Somewhere in Time Outtakes
by Serpent In Red
Summary: Outtakes that were written for Somewhere in Time. It would only cause more confusion if I were to put it in the main story, so here it is. Note: Reading this without reading the main story might be confusing.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**: Many thanks to Marauder's Wolf for beta-ing the chapter! Special thanks to Nerys for looking over the logic and flow. ;)

Just in case of any confusions, the chapters that appear in this fanfic are based on the alternate timeline that was created due to what happened in my ongoing fanfic "Somewhere in Time." Most people have no memories of the canon timeline; the Hermione, Harry, Ginny, and Draco have no memories of the canon timeline and of what happened in "Somewhere in Time." Therefore, some OOC-ness is expected, though I tried to keep them as IC as possible even though they were exposed to different circumstances in this new timeline.

If you haven't read "Somewhere in Time" before, there might be some confusion, in regards to why different people do certain things in these chapters. With that said, hope you will enjoy reading this as much as I had fun writing it.

~-0-~

**Somewhere in Time - Outtakes Episode 1**

A new year at Hogwarts always promised a whole new year of events. Though they might not be necessarily fun, Hermione could say with certainty that they would always be interesting.

With the Dark Lord officially reigning over the wizarding world and the majority of the Order members in hiding, she could not begin to imagine what might occur this year. Well, of course, except for the parties that Harry, Ron, and the twins were bound to be throwing, despite who would become the new Headmaster this year. Harry and Ron had been most disgruntled upon hearing that the position would be filled by none other than Professor Severus Snape.

"Oh great, that means we would have to spend most of our time in detention, doesn't it?" Ron had asked immediately.

Most of the wizarding world had received news of this over the summer via owls; the Weasleys, the Potters, and a few other selected people had been personally notified by the Dark Lord himself. Hermione was glad to say that she was one of the "selected people," since she was lucky enough to be over at the Weasleys for dinner when he arrived. However, Hermione suspected that she would have been informed, even if she were not at the Weasleys.

She recalled the first time she had seen him, merely five years after she found out she was a witch. In retrospect, she probably would have been more frightened about the Dark Lord's features, if she weren't half-swooning from the unrestrained magic that flowed throughout the room that accompanied his Apparition. From that moment on, she knew she had found a role model. The amount of knowledge he possessed and his control over magic was unheard of before, and she was sure there would be no other witch or wizard alive who could surpass him. Until this day, she could not believe that the Dark Lord had been patient enough to reply to her never-ending questions, and she often blushed when Harry and Ron teased her about it before she told them off. The debates she had had with the Dark Lord were eye-opening as well as mind-blowing, and she found herself always looking forward to the next one.

She had considered taking the last two years of Hogwarts off, just so she could learn more from the wizard who was now the most important man in the world. Upon hearing this, the Dark Lord, after short consideration, told her to finish the last two years of Hogwarts first. Though she was momentarily afraid that he had finally become tired with her nonstop chattering, that thought was dashed away when that lipless mouth of his curved into a smile—a smile which many others might have found frightening, but not Hermione—and he gave her his word that she could stay beside him after she left Hogwarts. For a few days, she couldn't go to sleep, excited at the prospect of what she might see and learn, staying by his side.

She kept that little secret from Ron, of course, since he would definitely turn sour upon hearing the news. It had always been kind of an open secret that Ron was so incredibly jealous of Harry for being close to the Dark Lord. If he somehow found out about _**this **_… she did not want to think about the kind of tantrum he would throw, especially after he'd found out that Harry and Hermione had become Head Boy and Head Girl of their year respectively.

And now, they were on their way back to Hogwarts to finish off their seventh and last year of education. The most heated topic on the Hogwarts Express and during their ride from the station to the Hogwarts castle was none other than the Defense Against the Dark Arts post. Everyone knew that none of the professors lasted for more than a year.

"I mean, look at Lockhart. He was so adamant about teaching the course, but then he asked for the Divinations position instead the year after," Ginny assessed.

"That's because he sucks in Defense Against the Dark Arts," Ron replied, earning a glare from Hermione.

"No, he doesn't," Hermione argued. "Everyone knows he's brilliant. Look at what he did in the books!"

"What he _**said**_ he did, Hermione," Ron said, rolling his eyes. "I doubt he could tell the difference between a werewolf and a puppy. That werewolf he supposedly caught in _Wanderings with Werewolves_? I doubt it's a genuine werewolf. I would like to see him trying to duel Lupin on a full moon."

"Reckon we could make that happen?" Harry asked with Ginny snickering on the side.

"That's not funny! If one of them were to get hurt …" Hermione said, exasperated.

"And it will most likely—_**definitely**_ be Lockhart," Harry said with a sure nod.

"If the two of you would have bothered reading, you would've realized that there were werewolves in Wagga Wagga years ago, and they had been rid of the problem exactly when Professor Lockhart said he had," Hermione said.

Harry, Ron, and Ginny shared an amused look with one another.

"So, who do you think will get the job?" Ginny asked, steering the topic away from their current Divinations professor. "Quirrell was sent over to Durmstrang to teach, Lockhart turned into the Divinations professor instead—"

"I still can't believe Hermione continued to take Divinations because of Lockhart. Merlin knows how many times she complained about the subject being rubbish," Ron hissed at Harry, which Hermione ignored.

"—Fenrir was uncovered as a werewolf, Moody got killed by Barty Crouch Jr., Umbridge got kicked out of Hogwarts, and Snape became Headmaster," Ginny finished counting off.

"Well, there are so many possibilities out there. Perhaps it's one of the Death Eaters," Ron suggested. His eyes lit up, and he looked at Harry. "Maybe it's your dad."

"That would be excellent," Harry said, his eyes bright with joy.

"Yeah, imagine all the trouble we'll get out of," Ron said somewhat dreamily.

"Ron, even if Mr. Potter were to get the position, we're not supposed to use that to our benefit," Hermione chided.

"As if others wouldn't have done so if they were in our place," Ron replied.

"Are you really lowering yourself to Malfoy's standards? Besides, I doubt Mr. Potter would be asked to take the position. He's one of the best Death Eaters, and I doubt the Dark Lord would want him here."

"Why not? It's not as if Mr. Potter can't leave the school during the year," Ron argued.

"Because the Dark Lord wants to insure the education of the students, Ron," Hermione answered, somewhat tiredly. "He'd made it clear many times that he values the well-being and education of the younger generations. Having Mr. Potter go on different errands throughout the school year and thus giving the students an incomplete education completely contradicts what he wants."

"The way she's going on about it, you would think that the Dark Lord's her boyfriend and not me," Ron muttered to Harry, who coughed into his hands, while Ginny had a hard time muffling her giggles.

A furious blush blossomed on Hermione's cheeks. "That's _**not**_ funny, Ron. If the Dark Lord were to hear that—"

Ron's face turned white momentarily and swallowed. "It was just a joke. You don't intend on telling him, do you?"

Hermione shot him a glare before looking towards Harry and Ginny.

Clearing her throat, Ginny spoke up, "Do you think Neville will come back this year? I mean, I thought I saw Malfoy at Platform Nine and Three-Quarters."

"That's because he's not the Chosen One. The Dark Lord never really saw the Malfoys as a threat anyway, so it doesn't make a difference if he came or not," Harry said.

"But still, wouldn't it have been a good way to hinder the Malfoys and force them to become submissive?" Ginny asked with a frown.

"Well, it's the Malfoys; did you really expect them to be intelligent?" Ron asked in return, rolling his eyes.

"I think it's mostly because the Malfoys still have a certain amount of influence over the Ministry. With the amount of money they have, it's not hard to pull certain strings with the higher authorities. Besides, the Malfoys hadn't outwardly risen up against the Dark Lord yet," Hermione said.

"But the Dark Lord took over the Ministry already. Aren't most of the important positions filled by our people already?" Ron asked. "And come on. We've known all along that Lucius Malfoy had been helping Dumbledore. They should just round up the lot of them and throw them in Azkaban."

"Not that I don't agree, but Lucius Malfoy would undoubtedly make a lot of noise about it if that were the case," Hermione said. "And rounding up the children wouldn't exactly look nice to the public. They would think of it as some kind of conquering."

"Hermione, it's just the Malfoys. As if the rest of the world would care," Ron said, rolling his eyes.

"The Dark Lord said it was a 'benevolent takeover.' We're not supposed to recklessly throw people we don't like into the prison," Hermione argued.

"Like Ron said, it's the Malfoys. Nobody would care," Harry said, amused.

"Not you, too, Harry," Hermione grimaced.

"What I'm really surprised about is that the Malfoys would let Draco come back to Hogwarts this year. I thought they would've hidden him as far away as possible," Harry said.

"The rest of the world, in general, supports the Dark Lord's views," Hermione explained. "Not to mention the fact that Durmstrang is nearly completely taken over by our people, too. If Draco didn't come back to Hogwarts, there won't be any schools out there for him."

"Still, if I were Lucius Malfoy, I wouldn't have sent my son back to school," Harry said.

"Which is why you're tons smarter than he is, Harry," Ron snickered. "And as if the Dark Lord would care about insignificant brats like Malfoy. Does the Dark Lord even know that there are junior ferrets running around in school?"

Their discussion continued until they sat down in the Great Hall and it finally died down as McGonagall led the first year students in. After the Sorting ceremony was finished, Snape stalked up to the podium in front of the staffs' table and glared down at the students, his lips briefly curving upwards into a sneer when his eyes landed on Harry.

The entire Great Hall remained quiet as they waited for the Headmaster to speak. Even the first years remained silent, as if they knew how nasty the former Potions Master could be when provoked.

"Those of you who have slightly more than half of a brain cell might have registered that immense changes are undergoing in the Ministry of Magic. As such, in order to prepare you, the board of governors decided that Professor Dumbledore no longer possesses the requirements needed to lead our school in this critical moment," Snape said.

Students ducked their heads and shifted their eyesight away whenever those coal-black, fathomless eyes landed on them.

"Therefore, I have been appointed with the task of bringing your education and knowledge up to par with what the government requires, something I'm sure _**some**_ of you will find difficult to achieve." Snape leaned slightly forward, his eyes narrowing above that hooked nose of his and making him even more sinister-looking than usual. "I trust that each and every one of you will understand the importance of following the rules while this school is under my control. Any rule-breaking and you might find yourself facing me and not just Argus Filch."

His eyes then flickered over to Harry and Ron before looking back at the rest of the students. For a moment, it looked like Harry wanted to mutter something under his breath but then decided against it.

For a long stretch of time, Snape glowered at the students, almost as if he were daring one of them to question him before he sat back down. Food then appeared on the tables, though still, the Great Hall remained relatively quiet.

"I should have brought my Omnioculars with me and then show Mrs. Potter how Snape glared at Harry just then," Ron said as he stacked up his plate with food.

"But he didn't announce who will be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor," Ginny said with a frown.

Ron stopped in the middle of devouring a chicken leg and stared at Ginny, a sudden look of horror on his face. A string of completely incomprehensible words left his mouth as pieces of food sprayed across the table.

"Swallow your food first, Ronald." Hermione wrinkled her nose as Ginny scrunched up her face in disgust.

"Do you think Snape's going to be the Headmaster _**and**_ teach Defense to us this year?" Ron asked again, this time without food.

"I hope not," Harry said with a grimace. "Who knows how many times he would throw me in detention if that were the case."

"I still don't understand why you don't bother telling your mum about it. She'd put a stop to it," Ron said.

"And give Snape the satisfaction of watching me do that?" Harry asked, the look of disgust becoming even more prominent now.

"There's no new teacher sitting at the staffs' table," Hermione commented, tilting her head upwards and gazing at where the teachers were sitting.

"You don't think that Lockhart came back to teach Defense, do you? I mean, does the curse on the position still work like that? If the professor took a year off and then came back to teach the course?" Ron asked.

"Better than Trelawney teaching the course," Harry muttered. He then paused. "No wait. Never mind. They're both horrible."

"Harry!" Hermione scolded.

"No, honestly, Hermione, can you imagine Trelawney teaching the course? Blimey, I would like to see her and Lockhart duel one another," Ron said.

"I wouldn't," Harry said, ignoring Hermione's disgruntled huff. "Watching them throw useless spells at one another for hours … I would rather listen to Percy talk about cauldron bottoms."

"Yeah, I guess it would become boring after a while." Ron nodded his head in agreement.

Suddenly, a crack resounded throughout the Great Hall, and everyone fell silent and turned their eyes towards the single figure clad in black that had just appeared in the middle of the room. From where Hermione was sitting, she could not see who it was, though she could tell that it was a man.

_Snape must have lowered the wards for the man to have Apparated into the school_, Hermione thought.

Without a moment of hesitance, the stranger strode towards where Snape was sitting. Several soft gasps could be heard from the students sitting at the front of the room, but Hermione did not turn her head to see who had made those sounds; she was busy trying to see if this were their new Defense professor.

Snape stood up from his seat, his face blank, though Hermione thought she saw a flicker of humble respect fly through her former Potions professor's face before he stood up to the podium again.

At the same time, the stranger turned around, giving the rest of the students a good look of his face.

Several more gasps resounded throughout the hallway, and Hermione thought she also heard a soft squeal coming from Lavender's direction.

"Oh my," Ginny softly commented, her eyes strangely bright as she stared at the man who was now standing to the left of Snape.

To some extent, Hermione could understand why the students, most of the female population and some of the males, were reacting the way they were. The young man—or at least, to Hermione, he looked young, perhaps younger than Harry and Ron's dads—was mind-blowingly handsome. His jet-black hair reminded Hermione briefly of Harry, but instead of being messy, it was neatly brushed to one side. His eyes were dark, so dark that they were almost black in color. His skin was pale, a sharp contrast to his hair and eyes. However, as delectable as his features were, this was not the only thing that brought people's eyes to the young man. Hermione couldn't describe it. There was just this inexplicable pull that brought every person's eyes over to him.

"Students," Snape drawled out, his soft voice easily carried out throughout the now silent Great Hall. "Professor Tom Riddle. Your new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor."

"Please let us have double Defense, please," Lavender started chanted softly, her eyes glued to the new professor.

"I trust that you will have … _**enlightening**_ classes with him, and I expect each and every one of you to give him your utmost respect," Snape continued to say.

Well, Hermione wasn't too sure about the "respect," but she could already imagine the amount of love letters the new professor was going to get during Valentine's Day.

"I reckon we're going to have another pointless Defense class then, just like second year," Ron commented after Riddle and Snape sat down in their respective seats.

"What do you mean pointless?" Hermione asked hotly.

"The only thing we've ever learned in that class is to never open up a cage full of pixies in a classroom. What else did we learn in there?" Ron complained.

"That's because you don't _**read**_. You can see that he's a talented wizard from his books. The way he dealt with werewolves was brilliant, and the way he did it was the right way," Hermione said, adding the last bit when Ron opened his mouth.

"Yeah, but you read about those techniques and spells from books, didn't you? If I'd spent so much time in the library, I could write my own book about it, too," Ron said, rolling his eyes.

"He's gotten awards for his deeds. I doubt you could say the same thing if you were to write books like that," Hermione huffed.

"Strange though," Harry said, looking through his bag, which caught the attention of Hermione, Ron, and Ginny.

"What is it?" Ginny asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"We didn't have to get any books written by Riddle," Harry replied, looking up at Ginny. It was then that they saw the mischievous glint in his eyes.

His words were met by snickers from both Ron and Ginny and an annoyed look from Hermione.

"Oh no. Does it mean we have to guess what the favorite color of Professor Riddle is then?" Ginny asked sarcastically.

"That was Professor Lockhart's ingenious way of testing whether we'd read his books or not!" Hermione exclaimed defensively. "It's not a kind of test ordinary witches and wizards can think of."

"Thank Merlin," Ron muttered.

"_**And**_ we've at least heard about Professor Lockhart before he decided to teach at Hogwarts. I've never heard of Professor Riddle's name before," Hermione continued.

"So should we be worried or happy about that? I mean, at least that probably means we wouldn't have to listen to a bunch of things that he had done before," Ron said to Harry.

Harry shrugged. "We'll see when we go to class, won't we? I'm more concerned about if we can get through the N.E.W.T.s with him as professor or not because it's required to become an Auror."

"I doubt you need to worry, Harry. You're brilliant in Defense Against the Dark Arts," Ron said.

"Thanks," Harry said with a grin. "But you know, Dad was telling me about …"

And as their conversations slowly drifted away from the professors, so did their minds.

After all, they didn't really have to worry about anything. Until tomorrow.

~-0-~

If there was anything Hermione hated more than Ron and Harry making ridiculous jokes about Lockhart, it would be the nonstop chattering of the female population of Hogwarts. Especially when a good-looking man was the topic.

She had to go through the entire night listening to Lavender and Parvati giggling about the new professor, and now, she had to suffer through them during breakfast. She wished that they would at least be a tad bit more inconspicuous. It would have made her feel embarrassed to be sitting at the same table with them if girls from the other Houses weren't doing the same thing. Nonetheless, the source of the problem continued eating his breakfast as if nothing were his concern.

"This is ridiculous," Hermione muttered.

"Well, you have to admit that he is handsome," Ginny said, sitting down across from her.

"Intelligence is far more important," Hermione argued.

"Yeah, that's precisely why Lockhart's your favorite professor," Ron said as he sat down next to her.

"Yeah, and you're my boyfriend. So what does that say about you?" Hermione snapped.

"That he's intelligent?" Harry offered as he sat down next to Ginny, who choked on the pumpkin juice she was drinking, while Ron shot a grin at him.

At that precise moment, McGonagall started handing out their schedules for the school year.

"Seems like Riddle's the new Head of Slytherin House," Ginny commented as she looked at the new professor.

He was also handing out schedules, but to the Slytherins, and Hermione noticed that some of the girls from the other Houses had a look of regret on their faces.

Lavender, who had just received her schedule, let out a small squeal.

"Double Divinations followed by double Defense today," she sighed to Parvati, who was sitting next to her and also had a dreamy look on her face.

"Are they taking Divinations with Trelawney or Lockhart anyway?" Ron asked randomly as he piled some more food onto his plate.

"Both," Hermione answered. "For the N.E.W.T.s, both professors teach the subject, but on alternate days."

"No wonder they're so happy then. I remember they were so fond of Trelawney, so I doubt they would miss her class just for Lockhart's," Harry said. He paused. "That means we have double Defense today, too."

"But no Divinations," Ron said gleefully and high-fived Harry.

At that moment, McGonagall gave them their schedules, and they immediately scanned it over.

"Merlin's pants, you're insane, Hermione," Ron commented as he peered at her schedule. "I thought you've stopped taking so many courses after third year."

"I _**don't**_ have as many courses as I did in third year," Hermione contradicted. "I didn't take Muggle Studies and Care of Magical Creatures."

"But it's _**still**_ ten courses," Ron said.

"And I would've taken twelve if there had been enough time and if I had enough energy," Hermione said.

Ron shook his head in disbelief and shared a look with Harry.

~-0-~

After six years of Hogwarts, Harry and Ron had come up with the strange idea that the classroom almost always served as a hint of how a professor would be like. Professor McGonagall's classroom, for example, was always orderly and neat while—Hermione had a hard time suppressing a laugh while trying to reprimand the two of them at the same time—in Ron's words, "Before Slughorn started teaching, the Potions classroom was always smelly, greasy, and oily, just like Snape."

Neither did she enjoy Harry and Ron's assessment of Professor Lockhart's classrooms, but she had learned to block out their conversations when it started to steer towards disrespectful comments about the obviously talented professor.

Therefore, all three of them were at a loss when they walked into the Defense classroom and found it completely empty. No chairs, no desks—nothing.

"Did we walk into the wrong classroom?" Dean asked from behind them.

"No, I'm pretty sure we're in the right one," Hermione answered.

"So what do you reckon this means?" Harry whispered to Ron next to her.

"Er … that the professor's brain is empty?" Ron suggested.

Harry snorted, and they both determinedly ignored Hermione's glare. Not knowing what else to do, the students filed into the classroom and waited for the professor to show up while talking quietly amongst themselves.

"Reckon we're going to get some kind of test like Lockhart?" Ron asked jokingly. "'What's Professor Riddle's greatest ambition?'"

"Oh, stop it, Ron," Hermione said tiredly.

He had been making far too many jokes along that line since the morning that it was slightly getting on her nerves already.

Before Ron could say something in return, Harry nudged him and signaled towards the other side of the room. Hermione followed his line of sight and found an all-too-familiar blond Slytherin.

"Looks like Lucius Malfoy really is missing a brain," Ron chortled. Suddenly, realization dawned over his face. "Oh, I know! Perhaps Professor Riddle is Lucius Malfoy under the Polyjuice Potion!"

The absurdity of his suggestion caused both Harry and Hermione to snort. At the same moment, the door opened, and their new professor entered the classroom. Hermione was not at all surprised to see most of the girls bunched up at the front of the class.

Riddle's dark eyes roamed over the room briefly before a ghost of a smile appeared at the corner of his lips.

"Good afternoon," he greeted them, which was answered by a chorus of murmurs. "Since you are in this class, I assume that you are striving to pass with exceptional marks on your N.E.W.T.s. As such, throughout the course of this semester, I will see to an increase in your knowledge in this field as well as your skills." He paused. "During this class, we will be focusing more on the practical side of the subject, while you will study the texts at your own time."

Harry and Ron shared a grin with one another while Hermione sighed softly to herself. She doubted the two of them would spend the time doing the actual reading. This time, she was putting her foot down and not allowing them to see her notes … if she could help it.

"Defense Against the Dark Arts is one of the subjects in which absorbing new information from books is equally as important as practicing it." His smile became more apparent at this point. "You have a question, Mr. Goldstein."

A look of surprise flashed over Anthony Goldstein's face, and then he recomposed himself before opening his mouth. "Yes, professor. But isn't it true that there are some spells that are handy enough to use in most occasions and so absorbing new information, which in this case means new spells, is not as important? For instance, _Accio_ and _Vocuo_ are basically the same spells, but the first allows the user to summon things from far away while the second can only be used to summon things for a short distance, at most two or three feet. So why not just use _Accio_ instead of _Vocuo_ for all occasions?"

"Excellent question, Mr. Goldstein," Riddle complimented as he folded his hands behind his back and leisurely walked back and forth in front of them. "There are many spells that are similar in nature and might seem repetitive. However, consider being in a Potions classroom, where you have so many different ingredients. It will be much easier and practical to use _Vocuo _than _Accio_ because you wouldn't want to have a whole cabinet of ingredients flying your way."

A couple of students laughed as their minds created a mental image of his words.

"Now, you might want to ask what does that have to do with Dark Arts?" He stopped in front of Lavender and Parvati.

Hermione rolled her eyes at the obvious infatuation they had over their new professor. They looked as if they were about to faint or drool all over him any second. Or maybe even jump on top of him.

"Each and every person has a preference when it comes down to spells, hexes, and curses," Riddle continued to say as he walked away from Lavender and Parvati, much to their dismay. "When you find yourself in the middle of a duel with another witch or wizard, you're not going to get a manual about the spells he or she is most likely going to use on you. Therefore, you must be prepared for anything that might be fired your way." He pulled out his wand and tapped it rhythmically against the palm of his hand. "For the first class, I would like to see what level of dueling you are currently at, in order to aid me in assessing which parts I should strengthen in you."

He motioned for the students to clear the middle of the room. By now, it became clear to Hermione, Ron, and Harry why Riddle had emptied the room ahead of time.

"I wonder if this is going to become another dueling club," Ron joked in a low voice to Harry and Hermione. "Reckon he's going to ask for Snape to become his assistant this time?"

Hermione hushed him when she noticed Riddle's eyes stopping momentarily on them. For some inexplicable reason, it made her heart jump. That _**look**_ on his face … it almost seemed as if he had heard what Ron had said. No … the amusement must have been something else. Riddle couldn't have possibly heard what they were saying this far away. Unless he was a Legilimens, too? It couldn't be. After all, being a master in Legilimency wasn't a very common thing, and it wasn't easy to become one. Even Professor Lockhart hadn't managed the art yet.

"Mr. Malfoy," Riddle called out. It appeared that he had already memorized each and every student's name in advance.

Draco's eyes snapped up when he heard his name called. Riddle gestured towards the middle of the room with his hand.

"Why don't you come first?"

Draco's eyes narrowed for a split second before he nodded, a haughty look still imprinted on his face.

"Oh, I can't decide who I want to see fly into the wall this time," Ron said, rubbing his hands together.

"Do you honestly think that Draco Malfoy can beat anyone in a duel?" Harry asked, amused.

"He's actually not really that untalented," Hermione said. "I mean, I've heard from the other professors that he actually scores pretty well on his tests and—"

"Hermione, Harry meant it as a joke," Ron deadpanned.

The awkward silence between the trio was broken when Riddle started talking again.

"To most wizards who have a good amount of experience with dueling, it is obvious from his posture that Mr. Malfoy has learned a bit about dueling," he said as his fingers languidly played with the ring he was wearing on his right hand.

A stiff smile appeared on Draco's lips, but it was quickly wiped off with Riddle's next words.

"However, it is also evident that he does not have as much confidence as he's trying to show us." Riddle pointed his wand at Draco's head. "The head is held too high with a certain stiffness to it, showcasing just how wary he is of the opponent—quite understandable, since he has no idea how this new professor of his duels." His wand flickered downwards until it was drawing attention to Draco's hand. "The hand holds the wand too tightly, making it hard for him to perform intricate spells, so it can be certain that his first spell would be something on the easier side. Of course, he might try something difficult, now that I've pointed it out, but the strength of such a spell would be negligible."

Harry and Ron were having a field day. "Happy" could not fully describe their mood right now, and Hermione was pretty sure they were going to talk about this for the whole day.

And she was positive that their feelings towards the new professor had just become loads better within the last few minutes.

Bringing his wand to the side, Riddle then bowed his body, a motion which was mimicked by Draco, signifying the start of the duel.

Therefore, the trio was surprised when Riddle turned his head to the side and started speaking.

"You might wonder why I've spent the last few minutes commenting on Mr. Malfoy's posture. From small observations like these, you can understand how to stage your attack on your opponent and get hints about your opponent's personality. Of course, other things, such as agility and stamina can only be tested after spells are used."

Hermione could not suppress a gasp, much like the rest of the students in the room, the moment a flash of orange left Riddle's wand and headed straight for Draco. Apparently, Draco was taken by surprise, too, since he had to jump to the side instead of conjuring a Shield Charm.

"Impressive agility skills, Mr. Malfoy, though I shouldn't be too surprised."

Hermione thought she saw Riddle's lips curve into a faint smirk for a split second, but the moment she tried to look more closely, it had disappeared, replaced by the same amiable, calm expression he had been sporting since the beginning of class.

"However, it appears that we will need to focus on strengthening your concentration. Getting distracted by the opponent is precisely the correct way to get yourself mortally wounded. If this had been anything other than a friendly duel, you could have easily been dead by now. Of course, I mustn't blame you for your … naivety. Apparently, I had overestimated your experience in dueling. To jump aside when you haven't clearly checked if there were another spell headed towards you …"

After shaking his head, he then fired a couple of more spells towards Draco.

"Concentrate, Mr. Malfoy, concentrate," he called out over the sounds of spells colliding with the wall.

A frown slowly appeared on Hermione's forehead. For some reason, there seemed to be … something off with this. Riddle sounded like a nice bloke and acted like one, but that was precisely the problem. There seemed to be something … hidden.

Hermione shook her head and pushed that feeling away. She was being silly. What could the professor be hiding? Unless he really was, as Harry and Ron had suggested, Lucius Malfoy under the Polyjuice Potion. But that was nonsense. The Dark Lord would've known if that were the case. Both the Dark Lord and Snape were masters in Legilimency and would immediately know if something were wrong. Besides, Lucius wouldn't have nitpicked on his own son's dueling skills in public like that.

Harry and Ron were now cheering for Riddle under their breaths, their eyes glowing with excitement as they watched Draco dance around the room, trying to avoid getting hit by one of the spells. Strangely enough, Riddle seemed to be completely at ease, firing spell after spell at a rapid pace. Draco didn't even get the chance to fire his own spell back.

When Riddle finally stopped, Draco crumpled down to the floor, panting heavily from the workout he had just gone through.

"Apparently, your talent in dueling still has plenty of room to improve on. Hopefully, you'll do better the next time we duel," Riddle said.

As Hermione watched Draco hobble back to his friends, she felt slightly guilty for being amused while watching Draco's arrogant feathers get ruffled. Another part of her, however, was slightly revolted by the fact that a professor would use his powers to ridicule a student like that. There was no doubt in Hermione's mind that Riddle had done that on purpose. He had probably thought that publicly humiliating the son of a well-known Order member was a good way to impress the Dark Lord, to get on the Dark Lord's good side. Hermione knew there had to be a reason why she preferred Lockhart over this Professor Riddle right from the beginning; Lockhart was too noble do something like this.

This was just mean, cunning, and … and utterly _**Slytherin**_. No wonder Riddle was the new Head of Slytherin House. Well, yes, the Dark Lord used to be a Slytherin himself, but that was beside the point; the Dark Lord was a completely different case.

Riddle's eyes then slid over to Hermione, Harry, and Ron. Harry gawked back, the look of a deer caught in the headlights on his face, while Ron glanced at anywhere but the professor, as if he weren't part of the class. Hermione, however, stared determinedly back at him.

Therefore, she was hardly surprised when Riddle said, "Miss Granger, care to come up next?"

Ron gave her hand a light squeeze and muttered a "good luck" to her before she walked forward to the empty space where Draco had been standing seconds ago. Surprisingly, Riddle didn't start commenting on her as he had done to Draco. Now, she was definitely sure that he was trying to get on the Dark Lord's good side. The lack of criticizing her, someone who was thoroughly loyal to the Dark Lord, was proof enough.

After a short bow to one another, Hermione positioned herself for attack. Riddle, on the other hand, gestured towards her.

"Ladies first," he said.

Hermione nearly rolled her eyes when she heard the collective sound of sighs from the girls in the room. Well, yes, most of the boys in Hogwarts hardly knew the basic concept of being courteous these days, but they didn't really have to _**sigh**_ to that, did they?

Riddle raised a single eyebrow at her, perhaps due to the fact that she was stalling. Without further hesitation and concentrating on the duel instead of what other people were doing, Hermione fired her first spell at him nonverbally. It wasn't much, considering the fact that Riddle had done the same but with much more ease than she did. However, she _**was**_ still a student at Hogwarts, and she would be damned before she performed worse than ferret boy, especially when she was allowed to attack first.

With a slash of his wand, her spell disintegrated. _**Disintegrated**_. Hermione's mouth dropped slightly open at that. There was a significance between disintegrating a spell and casting a ward to stop a spell, with the former requiring much more talent and magical prowess. It appeared that she had thoroughly underestimated her opponent.

Therefore, without further ado, she cast multiple spells consecutively.

"_Flammasectum_, _Aguifunicus_, _Flatuo!_"

The spells raced towards Riddle, and Hermione didn't waste time in waiting to see if they had hit him or not; she knew they would not. So, with a wave of her wand, she channeled her magic to swiftly change one of the spells, the rope-like string of water, so that it would lasso around Riddle. That would buy her some time to conjure more intricate spells, even if he managed to get rid of all the spells she had thrown at him.

What worried her more than anything was the fact that he was taking all of this so leisurely, almost as if he didn't care. The only change in his expression was that flash of approval that went through his eyes when she cast the three spells at him. Therefore, she wondered what would happen when he attacked.

Then, she realized that she couldn't continue fretting. To lose one's cool during a duel was dangerous and foolish. Taking a deep breath, she concentrated on her spell. Bringing her wand over her head, she slashed it diagonally in front of her before drawing it upwards again. A shimmer of light streamed from the tip of her wand, and with a light quiver of her hand, the light broke into multiple needle-like threads before racing towards Riddle.

By this time, Riddle had gotten rid of the water that had been looped around him, and with a wave of his wand, he slowed the threads of magic rushing towards him. With another twirl of his wand and a couple of impossibly quick motions, an enormous gust of wind blew forth, shattering Hermione spell to pieces. Before Hermione had the chance to blink, an invisible pressure pressed into her body, pushing her off her feet and sending her flying backwards.

"Hermione!" she heard Ron and Harry scream amongst the gasps from various other students.

Just as she braced herself for the impact, she felt her momentum slow before a pair of arms caught her.

"Are you alright, Miss Granger?" a voice asked from above her head.

Still trying to catch her breath, she looked up until she could see the person still holding her.

"Oh …" was all Hermione managed to say as her cheeks turned the brightest color of red they could when she realized that it was Riddle who was supporting her. "Um … yes … I think … I think I'm … I'm alright."

"My apologies," Riddle said, his lips curving upwards into a faint smile. "However, I must confess that I've found you to be quite an excellent dueler and had forgotten to hold back in my spells."

"That's … that's quite alright," she breathed out as she stared into his dark eyes.

Strangely enough, her heartbeat wasn't slowing down at all. In fact, it was speeding up quite a bit. Perhaps she was more shocked than she thought she was from the impact of Riddle's spell.

"Excellent work, Miss Granger," he said before letting go of her.

"Thank … thank you, professor," she stuttered to which he answered with a slight quirk of his lips.

As she walked back to where Harry and Ron were standing, she mentally berated herself for reacting like that. What was she thinking? Well, yes, he was just _**slightly**_ better looking than Lockhart, but that didn't mean she had to react like the rest of the girls in class. Not to mention the fact that she was positive that he was trying to be nice to them for a reason. Oh, what was she talking about? She was just reacting abnormally from the shock. Nothing more. She shouldn't think too much about it.

She successfully pushed away her random thoughts the moment she reached Harry and Ron. The redhead stared at her, an unsure expression on his face.

"Merlin's pants," he muttered as Hermione gave him an encouraging smile.

"Don't worry, Ron. You'll do just fine," she said.

"After seeing you and ferret duel him?" he asked with a humorless laugh.

"Just pretend that we're dueling the Order members in the Ministry again," Hermione told him.

"That … that's a completely different case. He's scarier than the lot of them added together," Ron said.

"Don't be silly," Hermione said, shaking her head from side to side before giving him a peck on the cheek. "Trust me. You'll do fine."

Ron gave her an uncertain, lopsided smile.

"Mr. Weasley," Riddle called out, as if on cue.

Ron looked up towards the professor. It almost seemed as if he wanted to tell the professor to duel Harry first, since his eyes were traveling between Riddle and Harry. Hermione gave him another squeeze on the hand before looking towards Riddle. A small gasp threatened to make its way out of her throat upon seeing a cold, frightening animosity in those dark eyes directed towards Ron. However, when she looked again, Riddle's face was calmly blank again.

It must have been a trick of the light.

Finally, Ron shuffled towards the center of the room and pulled out his wand.

After a short bow, Riddle pointed his wand towards Ron. However, he didn't immediately attack. His eyes slightly narrowed before a corner of his lips curved upwards. Hermione blinked as she got the uncanny feeling that Riddle was sneering at Ron. She had no idea what the redhead was thinking, but by now, his freckles were standing quite noticeably against his sickly white skin. Taking a deep breath, he straightened his back in an attempt to look brave.

"_Lumi_—" A spell made it halfway past Ron's lips before he was forced to stop by an impossibly quick flash of purple light shooting towards him.

He was forced to jump to the side in order to avoid the spell. However, that wasn't the end of it. An endless stream of hexes and spells exited from the end of Riddle's wand, hardly giving Ron a chance to retaliate.

And that was when she felt it. The dizzying feeling of being thrown into the dark waters of an unsettled ocean washed through her, and for a moment, she wondered if the Dark Lord had suddenly appeared in the classroom. Once she steadied herself, she looked around the classroom, but the man was nowhere in sight. A mild shock ran through her when she realized that the formidable magic she was feeling came from Riddle himself. That brought about an even more shocking revelation: He must be nearly as powerful as the Dark Lord himself.

But that was impossible and ridiculous. No one was as powerful as the Dark Lord himself. However, strong pulses of Riddle's magic vibrated through the air and continued to reach out to every corner of the room.

"Whoa," Harry exhaled softly beside her, and Hermione realized that he felt it, too.

Others in the room slightly swayed on their feet and were incapable of taking their eyes off Riddle. Hermione felt it nearly impossible, too, and she would've kept staring if she weren't worried about Ron's safety. Nonetheless, half of her mind was still reeling from the fact that their professor was this powerful, perhaps only second to the Dark Lord himself.

_Though much softer._

That thought came unbidden to her mind, and she had to agree. Riddle just didn't seem to be as decisive as the Dark Lord, and it was obvious that he held back too much. The Dark Lord _**never**_ held back in his spells as Riddle did. That was something that Hermione both admired and was envious about the Dark Lord. She tried many times to step away from books, but the feeling of insecurity would make its way into her system, and she would start doubting herself. The Dark Lord never had that problem. He never had a fear of failure, and she only wished that she could overcome that weakness one of these days.

Pulling her attention back to the duel in the middle of the classroom, she noticed that Ron seemed to be having a hard time holding up his own against Riddle. Sweat was condensing on his forehead, and she could tell that he was moments away from surrendering. Riddle, however, appeared to be completely unbothered by the fact that this was his third duel in a short amount of time. However, the concentration that was on his face was frightening, almost as if he were really trying to hurt Ron in one way or another.

Without warning, one of Riddle's spells managed to catch Ron before he could get out of the way and hit him right in his abdomen.

"Ron!" Hermione gasped with Harry before running over to him.

As Ron groaned and Hermione quickly checked him over to make sure that no permanent damage was done to him, they heard the sounds of someone walking towards them.

"Are you alright, Mr. Weasley?" Riddle's voice came above them.

Hermione had to bite on her lower lip to prevent a biting remark from leaving her lips. After all, he was the one who cast the spell; wouldn't he know best if Ron were alright or not? Nonetheless, she didn't forget that he was a professor and, thus, kept her tongue to herself. On second thought, he couldn't have possibly hurt Ron on purpose, since he _**was**_ the professor.

Riddle bent down and flicked his wand over Ron, and Hermione realized that he was running a simple diagnostic test to see if there were anything wrong with Ron.

Seconds later, Riddle said, "No permanent harm done."

Hermione and Harry then helped Ron to his feet while Riddle straightened himself up.

"I'm terribly sorry, Mr. Weasley. I had thought that since you were the son of two of the best Death Eaters there are, your dueling skills would have been excellent, similar to that of Mr. Potter over here," Riddle said. He looked at Harry and gave him a faint smile. "After all, both of you had fought at the Ministry of Magic a couple of years ago, and Harry had even fought alongside the Dark Lord against Dumbledore."

Harry blushed. "I tried my best."

"And I daresay, it's much better than what most adults could achieve, which was precisely why I didn't feel the need to test your dueling skills at all," Riddle answered.

Harry's face positively glowed upon hearing that. "My mum taught me."

"Naturally," Riddle conceded with a nod.

His answers seemed logical enough, and it did somewhat alleviate Hermione's anger towards him. However, she still wondered if he had done this on purpose. If anything, she was even more certain by now that he wanted to get on the Dark Lord's good side. Most of the Death Eaters knew that the Dark Lord favored Hermione and Harry over Ron. Therefore, by treating Ron harshly, others could not say that he was being unfair to Draco for being the son of Order members.

It made her slightly ill, since this was awfully scheming. Casting one more look at Riddle, Hermione helped Harry half-carry Ron back to the sidelines before she came to the final conclusion.

He was a Slytherin after all.

~-0-~


	2. Chapter 2

**Note**: I forgot to mention that since this is outtakes, not all the scenes posted in here might fall into a specific chronological order. Some scenes will be skipped and just mentioned along the line. After I'm finished with the specific arc that I have mind, random scenes might or might be added to this thread. This is basically just for fun after all, and not really outlined like the main story. :)

~-0-~

**Somewhere in Time – Outtakes Episode 2**

Hermione stared at the door for a moment, her hand hanging in midair, almost as if she were about to knock. However, something was stopping her. For some inexplicable reason, she felt … anxious. She shouldn't feel this way. Professor Riddle had already said that he just wanted to talk to her about the latest essay.

Well, yes, she did write _**something**_ in there that would have guaranteed this meeting, but she had no idea why she suddenly felt so uneasy.

Taking a deep breath, she brought her fist in contact with the hard redwood door and knocked three times. Seconds later, that signature smooth voice of the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor drifted into her ear, slightly muffled by the barrier separating them.

"Come in."

Dropping her hand down to the brass knob, she turned it, pushed open the door, and entered the office of Professor Tom Riddle. The first thing she noticed was how neatly organized everything was. Now, Hermione prided herself to be an orderly person, but with Riddle's office, it was almost like an obsession. She could almost bet ten Galleons that she couldn't find a piece of parchment out of line.

"Good evening, sir," she said when she came to a halt, some five feet away from his desk.

His indecipherable eyes left the parchment he was reading through and landed on her. Though it had been a couple of weeks since she had first seen him, she could not help but wonder as she gazed at him. Hagrid and Snape both have coal-black eyes, but how was it possible that Riddle's eyes appeared much darker than theirs? Strange.

Clearing her throat as well as pushing away the random thoughts going through her mind, she spoke, "You've asked me to drop by to discuss my latest homework assignment."

"Ah, yes," Riddle answered, his lips curving into a smile. "Please have a seat, Miss Granger."

After giving him a slight inclination of her head, she sat down in one of the two armchairs in front of his desk.

"In your essay, you've mentioned one of the spells that I've cast a few weeks ago," Riddle said, leaning back against his armchair and lacing his abnormally long fingers together.

That was when she noticed how peculiar the stone on his ring was. She couldn't really tell what _**kind**_ of stone it was, but it seemed like something along the lines of onyx.

Thankfully, she still remembered to answer while keeping her eyes on the peculiar ring.

"Yes, the spell that you had used when I was dueling you, during our first class," she answered.

"I find it hard to believe that you would find it difficult," Riddle said, a hint of amusement entering his voice.

Finally, she tore her eyes away from his hands and looked at him. "I've tried to research it after our duel, but I couldn't find anything pertaining to invisible spells. The closest thing I've found was suggesting the use of natural elements, such as the wind, but it's clearly not what you were using during our duel."

"No, it's not," he conceded.

"And I asked you about this during class that day, but you didn't answer the question completely," Hermione continued.

Riddle raised an eyebrow. "I thought I did."

"You just said that it took a certain amount of experience and magical competence to place enough energy behind the spell," Hermione argued.

He appeared amused by her words. "Isn't that the truth with most of the higher level spells?"

"Which is why I said it didn't answer my question," she said.

"I recall that I've also said that some spells can't necessarily be learned from books," Riddle said.

"Two weeks ago, when we were practicing spells to use against yetis," Hermione replied and recalling that day.

She could hardly control the corners of her lips from quivering from silent laughter. She remembered clearly how Draco nearly crumpled down in fear when he found out that they would be practicing spells on real, live yetis.

"You're saying that the spells can't be found in books … then how can I possibly know how to perform that spell?" Hermione asked exasperated.

"You rely too much on books, Miss Granger," he said, instead of answering her question.

She blinked several times rapidly. "Well … I … This isn't about that. I can't possibly just run around creating my own spells."

"Why not?" Riddle asked instead. Swinging out of his chair, he walked over to where Hermione was and picked up her hand. "I'll show you."

With that said, he pulled her out of the chair, disregarding the gasps coming from her. Her eyes wide, she first stared at the back of Riddle's head before ogling at the hand that was holding onto hers right now. For some reason, it made a warm feeling rush up to her cheeks, staining them red.

"But—but—" Hermione stammered, at a loss of what to say.

By this time, they had walked out of Riddle's office and out into the hallway.

Oh, Merlin. If one of the students saw this, she was so dead. She wildly swiveled her head around, making sure that no one was seeing this. All the while, she could feel her heart speeding up. As for the reason to that … she didn't dare to think about it.

"—and to think that you have some common sense and logic. After all these years, and you're still relying on _**books**_ instead that intelligent mind of yours," Riddle was saying, though Hermione had a feeling that he was talking to himself rather than her.

If possible, his compliment made the redness of her face deepen in its shade, though she had no idea what he meant by "after all these years." She hadn't known him since September, so how did he know that she relied on books for most of the eighteen years of her life?

Finally, they reached their usual Defense classroom, and after a closing the door behind them, Riddle pulled her over to the middle of the room. Twirling her around, he released her hand and placed his hand at the small of her back. He pulled out his wand and pointed it to a place a small distance away from them, and with a small wave, a boulder the size of a table appeared.

"Take out your wand."

"What?" she asked, confused. She thought he was going to show her.

"Take out your wand," he repeated.

When she failed to follow his instructions, his hand slipped into her pocket, took out her wand, and stuffed it into her hand. Grasping onto her hand with his own, he lifted it up until it was at eye level.

"Now," he said softly, his breath brushing against her earlobe and making shivers run down her spine, "I want you to concentrate your magic. It's _**your**_ magic. You're the one who's controlling it, not the other way around. The incantation of the spell is _Invisi Expulso_, not that that's any important—"

She thought she heard sarcasm in his voice. However, her brain was much too occupied thinking about how close he was to her right now. The hand that wasn't holding on to her wandarm was firmly pressed against her waist, and his lips were far too close to her. If she were to turn her head ...

She stopped herself from thinking any further. He was just teaching her how to perform the spell. She shouldn't let her mind drift towards _**that**_ way. She wasn't Lavender or Parvati.

"—The important thing is that you concentrate on making the spell invisible. The wand movement is exactly the same as when you're casting _Expulso_," he finished off.

Yet, he still did not step away from her. It made it much harder for Hermione to concentrate on the spell-casting, but half of her mind did not want him to move away.

No, wait! What was she talking about? Of course she wanted to move away. She would be betraying the Dark Lord—No, no, no! Ron, not the Dark Lord.

Hermione closed her eyes tightly, as if she were trying to squeeze those thoughts away.

"Ready?" Riddle asked, and she felt another shiver run down her spine as his voice resonated around her.

He was just teaching her a spell; it shouldn't feel so bloody intimate.

"Cast the spell."

However, she did not move. With her mind all fuzzed up as it was right now, she knew that if she attempted to cast the spell, she would mess up anyway.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "I … I'm still not prepared."

He chuckled. "Well, I've already noticed how insecure you are about your abilities. Your self-doubt is pretty much unfounded, Hermione. You are a talented witch." The hand holding her wandhand strengthened its hold. "Concentrate on the spell."

His hand then guided her through the swishes and flicks, and when the spell erupted from the tip of her wand, she felt it rather than saw it. Seconds later, the spell collided with the boulder and smashed it into pieces. Hermione stared at what was left of the boulder and couldn't say a word.

~-0-~

"You would think that after getting nearly blasted into the wall by Snape, Lockhart would've given up on the dueling club," Ron chortled as they made their way towards the Great Hall, where the dueling club would be held.

"Well, perhaps he needs his daily fix of getting properly beaten up," Harry joked, earning a snort from Ron, as the two of them, once again, ignored Hermione's death glares.

"Let's just hope that he'll at least get some brains knocked into him today," Ron said cheerfully.

"It stopped for two years already. I wonder why he brought it back," Harry mused out loud.

Ron shrugged. "I wonder if he's gotten an assistant today." He then counted off with his fingers. "Snape never got invited back after second year—I reckon it's because Lockhart knows that it would let people know how rubbish he actually is—who did he ask to do third year again?"

"He was going to ask McGonagall," Harry replied, unable to hold back a snicker.

"Oh right," Ron said, "remember when she turned his mouth into a pig snout? Mind you, she would've become my favorite professor if she didn't assign us three feet of parchment for homework that same day."

"Well, remember he then asked Lupin to assist him? And then, the year after that, Moody? Too bad the two of them didn't harm him enough to stop him from coming back," Harry added.

Harry and Ron continued to chatter on while Hermione walked a small distance in front of them, angry at them for the blasphemy they were speaking. Honestly, just because Lockhart was more intent in teaching them rather than showing off, Harry and Ron saw it as some kind of weakness in him. Unbelievable.

"Oh, look! Professor Riddle is here," Harry said excitedly before hurrying off to their Defense professor's side when they entered the Great Hall.

"Oh … well …" Ron said slowly, scratching the back of his head.

After what happened in their first class, Ron had always been cautious around Riddle. He didn't exactly dislike him per se, but he had always maintained a certain amount of fear and respect for their professor.

Harry, on the other hand, completely adored Riddle. He always stayed behind at the end of class to speak with Riddle and consistently talked to Hermione and Ron about how wonderful he was.

"I wonder if the Dark Lord taught him himself," Harry once said to Hermione and Ron.

It was a possibility. After all, Hermione had never seen someone master magic the way Riddle did, except for the Dark Lord.

A blush momentarily stained Hermione's cheeks as she remembered a couple of days ago when he had given her a private lesson about invisible spells. Mentally batting those thoughts away, she slipped up behind Harry, determined to look as invisible as possible.

"—next week. I thought about asking for permission to use the Quidditch Pitch this week, but Professor McGonagall told me that the Slytherin team already had the whole week booked," Harry was saying to Riddle.

A faint smile appeared on Riddle's lips. "That's not a problem at all, Harry. If you want, you may use it on Saturday and Sunday."

Harry's eyes turned wide and bright with joy. "Really?"

"Of course. I'll just inform Mr. Malfoy about it later," Riddle answered.

His dark eyes then slid over to Hermione, causing her to cringe. Involuntarily, she stepped backwards, hoping that Harry's figure could block her from view, which was a pretty fruitless feat, she realized later on.

"Miss Granger," Riddle acknowledged her.

Clearing her throat, Hermione stepped slightly forward. "Professor."

He waved his hand towards the center of the room, where Lockhart was standing on a stage had been constructed for dueling purposes. "I suppose you're here to see Professor Lockhart."

"I'm here to practice dueling," Hermione replied quickly.

She had no idea why, but she wanted to make that clear all of a sudden. Then again, Lockhart was the one assembling the club, so it wouldn't have been too strange for her to want to be here to see him. Besides, that was one of the reasons most of the girls were here anyway, wasn't it?

During her confusion, she failed to see the smile on Riddle's face momentarily slip into a smug smirk before he composed himself again.

"Is that so?" he asked, his expression turning contemplative. "I suppose it is a good place to practice invisible spells."

"Invisible spells?" Harry asked, looking between Riddle and Hermione curiously. Then, a look of realization dawned on his face. "Oh! The spell that you've used on the first day of class."

Riddle nodded his confirmation.

"I've hardly ever seen anyone use that spell before, although I recall the Dark Lord using it against Dumbledore during the fight at the Ministry. Did you learn it from the Dark Lord?" Harry asked.

"You could say that," Riddle said, a strange look in his eyes.

Harry's eyes widened. "Or did you develop it with the Dark Lord?"

Before Riddle could answer, Lockhart got up on the stage, dressed in emerald green robes and a wide smile on his face. Subtly, Riddle moved behind Harry, though it hardly escaped Hermione's notice that he was now standing right next to her.

"Ladies and gentlemen, can everyone see and hear me?" he asked, glancing around the room and winking whenever he made eye contact with the females in the audience. "Excellent. Now, for those of you who had been here for more than three years recall that we had a dueling club back then, and I have decided to bring it back." With that said, he spread his arms wide apart and waited for a round of applause.

The females, naturally, eagerly clapped their hands together while the males shared looks with one another.

"I'm utterly surprised with how ecstatic you seem about this," Riddle whispered sarcastically to Hermione, whom had merely clapped twice before putting her hands down.

She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "Excuse me?"

A sly smile touched the corner of his lips. "I thought that you would've been more excited about spending more time with Gilderoy."

She turned her head a fraction of an inch to stare at him as her cheeks turned red yet again. How did he know that she fancied Lockhart?

It must have been Ron who had told him. The redhead never lost an opportunity to tease her about it, and she doubted he would this time.

And why was she blushing again? She was turning red far too often in front of Riddle.

Biting the inside of her cheek to stop herself from replying, she turned her attention back to Lockhart.

"Many of you know me as the Divinations professor. However, some of you might recall that I was one of the best Defense Against the Dark Arts professors of this school," Lockhart continued to say.

"He wishes," Harry muttered beside Hermione.

Riddle clapped his hand on Harry's shoulder, and they shared a small grin with one another. Hermione wondered if the two of them had discussed Lockhart before in private.

"The only reason I had decided to become your Divinations professor was because I decided to let other youngsters have a hand in teaching the delicate subject of Defense Against the Dark Arts. After all, not many of you had the opportunity to face the dangers that I had," Lockhart said, staring straight at Riddle with a toothy smile. He then turned towards the students. "For further details, see my published works."

"And read rubbish? No thanks," Ron said under his breath.

"Yeah, we'll just ask Hermione if we're that desperate. She's read it at least twenty times already," Harry whispered conversationally to Riddle.

"Harry!" Hermione hissed.

"What?" Harry asked with an impish smile.

Not wanting to see what expression Riddle was sporting now, she snapped her head towards Lockhart.

"Professor Riddle had kindly agreed to helping me assist you in the grand art of dueling this year," Lockhart said. He held his hands up as if to calm the crowd down. "Don't you lot worry. You'll still have your Defense professor after this."

Harry let out a defeated sigh on the side and shared another grin with Riddle.

"Whatever should I do now? I suppose I should book an infirmary bed in advance," Riddle said to Harry in a low voice.

"You mean, for Lockhart?" Harry joked.

"Now, now, you know what a wonderful professor Gilderoy is. After reading all his wonderful books, I shudder at the mere thought of what might happen to me if I were to duel him," Riddle said, amusement laced throughout his voice.

"What he said he did, and only Hermione here would think that he's a wonderful professor," Harry said while disregarding Hermione's annoyed look. He smiled. "If Fred and George were here taking bets, I would've placed my money on you."

Giving Harry another smile, Riddle then made his way up to the stage while the females in the audience let out another sigh. Now that he was at a safe distance, Hermione allowed her eyes to run over him. He certainly was an eye-catcher, and it was not just because of the looks. There was a certain elegance in the way he walked, and the confidence that he exuded was probably second only to the Dark Lord. Hermione could almost bet that even if he didn't have his looks, he would still get people listening to and adoring him.

When he stopped some distance away from Lockhart, he tapped his wand rhythmically against the palm of his right hand calmly. Though most witches and wizards adored their wands, there was still some kind of distance there; with Riddle, however, it was almost like the wand was a part of his body, rather than a tool for magic.

"As you can see, when we are in a wizard's duel, we are supposed to stand a small distance away from one another," Lockhart said before turning to face Riddle. "Excellent, Tom, I knew you had it in you to become a wonderful dueler."

"Thank you, Gilderoy," Riddle replied, the hint of amusement becoming more apparent in his eyes.

For some reason, Hermione didn't feel reassured by the look on his face. It just … didn't look as kind as it should have when people smiled. It was almost like the look Crookshanks had after accomplishing something naughty.

"And then, we bow to one another before we start dueling one another," Lockhart said before they bowed to one another.

While Lockhart took a dueling stance, Riddle returned to the casual position he was in before, except this time, he no longer tapped the wand on his hand. Instead, he ran his finger over the length of the wand, as if he were deciding what spells to use.

"_Talatupulas_!" Lockhart shouted as he waved his wand in the air.

The students stared at the empty space between Riddle and Lockhart, wondering if the latter had cast an invisible spell. Then, they realized that that couldn't be it. Though Riddle hadn't moved at all, he appeared unharmed. Slowly but surely, he tilted his head to the side, as if he had found something questionable about Lockhart. Unconsciously, upon seeing Riddle move, Hermione let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding.

Lockhart stood still for a split second before his mouth broke into a huge smile again.

"Excellent, Tom, you've realized that that was a fake spell," he said loudly.

Riddle raised an eyebrow. "I see."

A glint of nervousness passed through Lockhart's eyes before he composed himself and pointed his wand at Riddle again. "_Serenupren_!"

This time, a feeble yellow light left the end of Lockhart's wand. Riddle, on the other hand, still didn't move, and before the spell hit him, it had already dissolved into nothingness. As much as Hermione didn't want to admit it, she knew that Riddle hadn't even moved his wand yet; the spell itself had been too weak to hit its intended target.

Riddle stared at the place where the light had disappeared before glancing upwards towards Lockhart again. "Still testing the waters with 'fake spells,' Gilderoy?"

"Yes, of course! It's always a wise idea to use harmless or fake spells to check the abilities of your opponent first. Otherwise, one might underestimate their magical ability," Lockhart said. Aiming his wand again, he twirled his wand around again. "_Turmuncunal_!"

A puff of smoke blasted backwards towards Lockhart, and he coughed and waved it away with his free hand.

"Excuse me, my wand was a bit … overexcited. No worries. Ah, thank you, Miss Bones," Lockhart said as he took the handkerchief Susan Bones offered to him. When he was finished wiping the black stains from the smoke off his face, he turned back towards Riddle with a charming smile. "Sorry to keep you waiting, Tom. Do start firing spells. I realize that you might not be as experienced in spell-casting as I am, but that's what the dueling club is for: to polish our skills."

"Thank you, Gilderoy. Perhaps you can … evaluate if I'm performing these spells correctly," Riddle said.

A shiver ran down Hermione's spine upon seeing the expression on his face. Others might see it as a courteous smile, but to her, it was … cold … calculative …

Dangerous.

"Of course, of course, Tom! Go ahead and try them. I'll be more than happy to teach you a thing or two," Lockhart said.

Riddle's lips spread into a smile before he brought his wand over his head and slashing it downwards until it was pointed directly at Lockhart. "_Talatupulas_."

A grayish-black light left the tip of his wand and rushed towards Lockhart. Before Lockhart could even think about jumping to the side, the spell hit him straight in the chest. He catapulted through the air and landed a good five feet away from where he had been standing.

Harry immediately let out a cheer; even Ron let out a whoop of happiness. Riddle must have heard them, since he turned his head slightly and made eye contact with Harry before turning back towards Lockhart.

A small part of Hermione's mind wanted to check if Lockhart were alright, but an even greater part of her mind was concentrating on Riddle. This was so wrong. She should be cheering for Professor Lockhart, not Professor Riddle. Nonetheless, she couldn't move her eyes from him.

"He is _**so**_ dreamy," Lavender gushed a small distance away from them.

"Do you reckon that I've cast the spell right, Gilderoy?" Riddle asked calmly as he brought his wand back to his side again.

Lockhart struggled to get up, but after much wincing and forcing a smile on his face, he replied, "Yes, yes. That was … rather well-done. Although there was still some … small errors in the wand movements."

"I'm sure there is," Riddle answered. "Perhaps those errors could be omitted with the second spell?" In a fluid movement, his wand was pointed at Lockhart again. "_Serenupren_."

This time, Lockhart managed to move his hand before the greenish-brown light hit him straight on the thigh. Time seemed to have frozen for a fraction of a second before soft murmurs erupted throughout the Great Hall.

"What happened? Did you see what happened to Lockhart?" Harry asked as he stretched his neck to see if any harm had been done to Lockhart.

"Riddle couldn't have missed, could he? But Lockhart doesn't look hurt," Ron said, tiny hints of disappointment in his voice.

As far as Hermione could see, nothing happened to Lockhart. He, too, was checking himself to see if any harm had been done to him, but to no avail. Riddle, however, appeared every bit as at ease as he had been since the beginning of the duel.

"Not to worry, Tom," Lockhart said as he looked back at Tom with an encouraging smile and a bit more bounciness in his words. "You're doing fine for someone this young and inexperienced. When I was your age, I couldn't even perform half of the spells I'm performing now—"

"Like that would be a big difference," Harry muttered, a frown growing on his forehead.

"—It's not a big deal to fail in performing spells. All you need is more practice. I will be happy to assist you, if you want. After defeating so many creatures, performing spells such as this is not a big …"

And suddenly, Lockhart trailed off. The rest of the students stared, and it took a moment before Harry, Ron, and Hermione recomposed themselves from their surprise. Right before their eyes, Lockhart's nose seemed to have grown an inch longer.

"I think I need new glasses," Harry muttered as he took off his glasses and wiped them with his robes.

"Well … this is … I suppose …" Lockhart said as he stared at his slightly larger nose.

Riddle continued to remain quiet, though a faint smirk seemed to be permanently printed on his face now.

"Not a big problem. I've heard of something like this before when I was traveling the deserts of Mongolia. A beautiful woman had attracted the jealousy of a powerful demon, and in order to ruin her beauty, the demon had cast a curse on her," Lockhart said.

Nonetheless, with each word he said, his nose continued to grow longer.

"So, whenever he talks, his nose will grow longer?" Harry asked.

Having heard his question, Riddle turned his head slightly to look at him and answered, "Only when he lies, Harry."

"Oh," Harry answered, his eyes shining with interest and glee.

"Let's hope that Madame Pomfrey doesn't know the counter-curse to this," Ron joked.

"So … did he lie about the story or about traveling to Mongolia?" Harry asked, moving closer to the stage.

"The story is definitely true," Riddle answered. "It has been written down in many books. I'm sure Miss Granger had encountered it before."

When his eyes landed on her, she immediately lowered her sight. She didn't really know why she did that, nor did she know what to say in the current situation. After all, Lockhart did try to use the spell on Riddle first.

"Perhaps you should take a trip over to the school infirmary, Gilderoy," Riddle suggested, turning his attention back to his opponent.

"It's not a problem, Tom. Just a small problem," Lockhart replied, though he kept his eyes on his nose, which embarrassingly grew longer yet again.

"Yes … quite a … small problem," Riddle answered slowly. "Then I suppose it wouldn't be too hard for you to … _**analyze**_ the last spell." Without waiting for Lockhart to answer, he waved his wand. "_Turmuncunal_."

The bluish-purple light that left Riddle's wand sped towards Lockhart, striking him right in the face. Tentacles immediately began to grow out of his ears while his head suddenly seemed to have become some kind of deflated balloon. The only part that seemed to still retain some form of shape was his now overly long nose.

"Go, Professor Riddle!" Harry and Ron cheered next to Hermione.

"He's got to be the coolest professor," Seamus said excitedly next to Harry. "I thought Lockhart's had it the worst back in fourth year with Moody, but this … this is definitely topping that year."

"Do you think he's alright?" Hermione asked, though she still had her eyes on Riddle.

"Who? Professor Riddle?" Ron raised his eyebrows at her.

"Does it look like I'm asking about him?" she asked exasperatedly.

"Well, you were staring at him," Ron pointed out.

Without warning, her cheeks flared again. "Well, I'm just thinking that it's awfully cruel of him to do that to Professor Lockhart."

"It's _**Lockhart**_. Nobody cares. I rather have you telling me the advantages about spew than telling me this is cruel," Ron said, rolling his eyes.

"_**I**_ care, and for the last time, it's _**not**_ spew," Hermione said, her eyes blazing.

"Seems like those are rather useful spells after all, Gilderoy. On behalf of the students, I thank you for demonstrating them," Riddle said before he walked down the stage, amidst the cheers of those who disliked Lockhart.

When he walked past Hermione, he said in a low voice so that only she could hear him, "Seems like you'll have to practice invisible spells in private with me again, now that the dueling club needs to be stopped until Gilderoy recovers."

Hermione's heart sped up to his words, and she couldn't find it in her to look him in the eye. Therefore, she chose to keep staring at Lockhart.

"I need to go and see if Professor Lockhart's alright," she muttered before walking stiffly towards the Divination professor.

Unfortunately, since she didn't look backwards, she didn't see how Riddle's gaze turned cold upon hearing her words.

~-0-~

Riddle stared at Hermione for a second before his dark eyes filled with undeniable hilarity. "I think I might have heard you incorrectly the first time, but you were saying that _**I**_ am trying—"

"—to get on the Dark Lord's good side," Hermione said, a stubborn look etched on her face and her arms crossed over her chest. "It's obvious, isn't it? _**You're**_ just bullying Malfoy to prove to the Dark Lord about how loyal you are to him."

Much to her surprise, instead of getting angry, Riddle chuckled at her statement, which caused her to stop talking and stare at him.

"Get on the Dark Lord's good side, you say?" he asked, the mirth dripping from every single syllable of his words.

"Yes," she answered stiffly.

"Get on the Dark Lord's good side," Riddle repeated, and for a moment, Hermione thought he had gone mad. "Now, why would I want to do that?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. What kind of a question was that?

"The answer would be obvious, wouldn't it?" Hermione asked. "The wizarding world belongs to the Dark Lord now. Most people—" She stared pointedly at him. "—knows better than to fight against our Lord, since it would be both stupid and pointless. Therefore, you want to get on his good side in order to—"

She bit down hard on her tongue to stop herself from demanding what in the world he was laughing about. Though she was confronting him, she did not want to be rude to a professor. The point of this was just to stop him from bullying Ron and Malfoy.

"You think that I'm trying to get on the Dark Lord's good side," Riddle muttered to himself as he shook his head. "For Salazar's sake, if I hadn't known you well enough, I would've thought you were somehow related to Crabbe and Goyle."

Oh, that was an insult if she ever knew one. Her irritation rose to new levels, and she doubted she could hold back her anger any much longer, even if he was her professor. However, his next words stumped her, somehow managing to freeze her wrath and replacing it with disbelief.

"I do not need to get on the Dark Lord's good side, Miss Granger," he said. A smile—was it a mocking one?—appeared on his face. "I will never _**need**_ to get on the Dark Lord's good side. There's no one that the Dark Lord trusts more than me.

Hermione's mouth dropped slightly open at his arrogant declaration, and a derisive snort left her mouth before she could stop herself.

"Really? There's 'no one' that the Dark Lord trusts more than you? You have quite a bit of a confidence in yourself, don't you? What makes you think that the Dark Lord trusts you more than any other Death Eater? You're not the Dark Lord so how would you know what he's thinking?" she demanded.

Riddle raised an eyebrow at her and slowly walked closer to her. "Oh? So … are you saying that the Dark Lord trusts you more than me?"

Was that amusement in his voice? Well, he certainly looked smug, and Hermione suddenly had the urge to pull out her wand and hex him.

_He's a professor, he's a professor, he's a professor_, she repeated in her mind to stop herself from doing anything rash.

Besides, she doubted she could beat him in a wizard's duel.

"That's too arrogant of a statement to make," Hermione said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Riddle stopped right in front of her, towering over her petite figure, before he lifted his hand and caught a lock of her hair between his fingers.

"Perhaps it is … but it is the truth," he said as he played with the strands of hair between his fingers.

Suddenly, Hermione realized that they were standing a bit too close, and her cheeks burned. Why hadn't she moved away? This wasn't exactly like her, to be off her guard. And why wasn't she stepping away now? Why is she letting him touch her hair?

Embarrassment casting a dark shadow over her irritation, she stumbled backwards and kept a safe distance between her and the professor. His eyes were slightly hooded, so she had no idea what he was thinking at the moment. She should reprimand him; his actions, him playing with her hair, were far over the line that remained between a professor and his students. However, the words stayed at her throat, and she could not bring herself to speak them.

Instead, she said, "I don't believe you." She paused and locked eyes with him when he finally looked at her again. "And … and I doubt the Dark Lord would trust anyone so easily. If he trusted you, we would have heard of you a long time ago. And … and mind you, if you were to abuse your power as a professor, I will have to report this to the Dark Lord."

"Oh?" Riddle asked as he took another step towards her. "And what if I am the Dark Lord?"

Hermione stared at him, shocked to the core, and then, realization dawned on her, freezing her insides. Riddle wanted to take over the Dark Lord's position. That had to be it. That was what he meant. This was … this was outrageous. She had to … she could not … she could not just stand here and watch him scheme against the Dark Lord. She would have to alert the Dark Lord about this.

Taking one last look at him, Hermione spun on her heels and ran out of the classroom, failing to see Tom Marvolo Riddle's smirk turn into soft chuckles.

~-0-~

It was after she sent a message to the Dark Lord, asking to meet him, that she realized how utterly naïve she was. There must be a reason why Riddle had decided to tell her, or at least, hinted to her about his plans.

Didn't he say that the Dark Lord trusted him more than anyone else? That must be it. He must have thought that the Dark Lord would have no reason to believe her if she were to tell him about Riddle's plans to usurp him. How was she going to convince the Dark Lord that she wasn't lying?

As she paced around in front of the door leading to the dining room of Grimmauld Place, she started second-guessing herself. Could Riddle have been kidding with her? No, if he truly knew the Dark Lord that well, he should have known that this was not something that one should joke around about. The Dark Lord would not have pardoned him, even if he were the most trusted.

After a while, Molly and Arthur came out of the dining room. They had obviously finished reporting to the Dark Lord, and upon seeing Hermione, Molly gave her a kind smile.

"You may go in and see him now, dear," she said, touching Hermione gently on the face.

"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley," Hermione replied softly before entering.

After the normal formalities of kneeling and waiting for the Dark Lord to permit her to stand, her mind decided to stop working; the only thing that she could see in her mind's eye was blank. Then, suddenly, a whole avalanche of ways to explain the situation to the Dark Lord came crashing down.

_You can't trust Riddle._

_He's trying to take over your place._

_There's something wrong with Riddle._

_He's not the right person for the job._

_Aren't you worried that he might … abuse your trust?_

_Why is he teaching at Hogwarts anyway? Why haven't we seen him before?_

A whole list, but none of them seemed like the right thing to say.

"You've requested for a meeting, my little lioness?" he asked, leaning casually back into the armchair he was sitting in.

"Yes, my Lord," she answered.

Her heart began to speed up again. She knew what question he would ask, but she had no idea how to answer him.

"What for?"

Before she could stop herself, she said, "Professor Riddle's a traitor."

The Dark Lord stared at her, and when she made eye contact with him, words started to fall out of her mouth as if she had prepared them ahead of time already.

"He knows how much you trust him, and he's preparing to somehow take over your place. He _**wants**_ to be the Dark Lord himself. He told me so himself, and he … he knew that you wouldn't believe me because you _**trust**_ him so much. But just two days ago, he told me, he asked me what if he were the Dark Lord, and I just knew he couldn't be possible kidding because it's not something to joke about …" she trailed off and bit her lower lip, suddenly at a loss of how to continue.

There was so much more she wanted to say to the Dark Lord, but she didn't know how to say it.

"So …" the Dark Lord said slowly, and her heart sank when she heard the hint of laughter in his voice, "you're saying that Riddle is secretly planning to become the Dark Lord himself."

"… Yes, my Lord," Hermione answered, and the feeling of dread continued to increase inside of her.

The Dark Lord didn't believe her. He really did trust Riddle. Oh, this was not good. This was not good at all.

"You don't … You weren't there to see him, my Lord. His tone of voice was so serious, and well …"

"I think you are thinking too much, Hermione," the Dark Lord cut in.

"But my Lord—"

The Dark Lord held up his hand, signaling for her to stop. Though reluctant, she managed to stop herself from talking—for a second.

"But—"

"And that's enough for that topic today, my little lioness," he cut in again, and this time, there was a sense of finality in his words.

She was then dismissed, and Hermione felt her worry slowly turning into despair. What was she going to do? If something happened to the Dark Lord …

No. She would not let anything happen to him. The Dark Lord was the hope for the wizarding world and the Muggle world. There had to be some way to prove to the Dark Lord that there was something wrong with Riddle.

~-0-~

**A/N**: The chapter is the un-betaed version. Special thanks to Nerys for looking over the chapter for logic and flow. Lots of thanks to those of you who read, faved, and alerted. Many, many thanks to those of you who'd taken the time to review: obsessed-andrea, gakuhaitsu, hollyandvine, m0nt, colortheskyred, Lemon cupcakes, whynot78, Megii of Mysteri OusStranger, Nerys, Dream a Dream123, ShimmeringWater, Shan84, Iceagesurvivor123, cerulean azure, Hulkishpower, DreamsMelody, AliBelly, Mistress DragonFlame, and Miss Caroline Potter!

Anonymous review replies as well as replies to those of you who don't have the PM option turned on can be found on my review reply LJ, the link of which can be found on my profile.


	3. Chapter 3

**Somewhere in Time – Outtakes Episode 3**

"I know. The class is just—where are you going, Hermione?" Ron stopped in the middle of his conversation with Harry when they saw Hermione stand up from her usual armchair in the Gryffindor common room.

Displeasure flashed over her face. "Detention."

"_**What**_?" Both of them stared at her in shock.

"With who?" Harry asked curiously, though he seemed to not have recovered from his shock yet.

"Professor _**Riddle**_," Hermione answered through gritted teeth.

"But—no—wait, he _**likes**_ you," Ron said, his eyes wide. "I mean, he practically praises you in every single class."

"Well, that didn't stop him from giving me detention, did it?" Hermione asked, trying to keep away from the reason.

She was greatly irritated when she found out that the Dark Lord had told Riddle about her "concerns"—not at the Dark Lord, of course; she would never be irritated at him. Riddle walked over to her the day after her meeting with the Dark Lord with an annoying smirk on his face and told her that from then on, she would be having detention with him until she "learned her place."

Well, truth to be told, the only person who needed to learn their places was Riddle himself, but Hermione managed to hold her tongue. Since she was going to have detention indefinitely with him, she did not plan on letting the whole school know about her plans.

It was hard for her to not just tell and let everyone help her gather information about Riddle. However, she had several concerns about it. First of all, except for Harry and Ron, she didn't exactly trust other people, even those in her House. Neville, for example, had been in Gryffindor and he definitely could not be trusted. The last thing she wanted was for Riddle to find out what she was doing. Secondly, she did not need the Order gaining the information that there might be a chance to overrun the Dark Lord, and there were still children of Order members running amuck the school.

"Anyway, I'll see you later," Hermione said before heading out of the common room.

After cursing Riddle a million ways in her mind for nearly ten minutes, she finally reached his office. She glared at the door for a good two minutes before knocking.

"Enter," Riddle's voice sounded from behind the door.

Trying her best to control her anger, she opened the door and entered the room.

The man sitting leisurely behind the table was already smirking at her the moment she looked at him, and she really, _**really**_ wanted to punch it off his face. Too bad he was no Draco Malfoy.

"Miss Granger." He nodded his head.

"Professor." She might as well keep civil. She must not let him find out about her plan.

She kept her eyes strictly on the wall right behind him; if he managed to avoid letting the Dark Lord know about his betrayal, then he was obviously talented in Occlumency, which meant that he could also be a master in Legilimency.

"Sit." For some reason, his voice sounded different when they were alone, though she couldn't really pinpoint what exactly was different. It was almost like he was putting a frontage for others to see.

Why not her then? He would've had a lot less trouble if he hadn't let her find out about his true colors.

She sat down in one of the armchairs in front of his desk, and she was unpleasantly reminded of the time when she had come in here to ask him about a spell, the invisible spell.

"Do you know why you've gotten detention with me?" he asked.

_Because you're a right, foul git?_

"No, sir," she replied instead.

She wondered if he dared to confront her about what she had told the Dark Lord. However, she then remembered that he dared to admit to her that he planned to take over the Dark Lord's empire, so of course he wouldn't care.

As she had predicted, a mirthful expression appeared on Riddle's face. "No? You have … absolutely no idea why you've landed detentions with me?"

"No, _**sir**_," she repeated herself, not letting herself blink at all.

If she could have, she would have stared straight into his eyes. In current conditions, however, she rather played it safe and avoided the possibility of him performing Legilimency on her.

"Hm … interesting," he said, rubbing his chin with one of his hands. He then stared back at her. "Do you know I've just heard a rather … amusing story?" When she didn't say anything, he continued, "I've heard that just recently, you've had—you've _**requested**_ a meeting with the Dark Lord."

It was not a question, so Hermione chose to remain silent. It was not because she was a patient person, definitely not, but it was more the fact that she was worried about what she might say if she did start speaking. She was not known for being discreet when provoked.

He leaned slightly forward in his chair, placed an elbow on the table and propped up his chin. "You've told the Dark Lord about our conversation."

Finally, her silence made him raise an eyebrow.

"No answer from Hermione Granger?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I have no idea what kind of answer you are searching for. After all, you hadn't asked me a question yet," Hermione replied.

A mock expression of realization dawned on his face. "Ah, you are correct. I have failed to ask you a question yet." His eyes glinted with merriment as he stared at Hermione. "Did you really find the idea of me being the Dark Lord so … repulsive?"

Hermione's eyes rapidly filled with incredulity as they snapped over to his. What else did he expected for an answer? After a short pause, during which she calmed herself down and contemplated about what to say, she slowly opened her mouth.

"Professor, since the Dark Lord … _**believes**_ you to be a trustworthy man, I fathom that I should consider your words to be both true and reliable. However, these things that you tell me had and have quickly diminished any inkling of confidence that I have for you, and I trust that the Dark Lord would also be most displeased to hear you joking about these matters," she said, keeping her face solemn and strict.

Turning the ring on his hand around slowly, he kept his eyes firmly on Hermione's, and the smile on his lips continued to become more prominent. Then, he got up from his chair and slowly sauntered around his table, until he was standing behind her.

Hermione, on the other hand, stared straight ahead, her face arrogantly defiant and almost daring him to contradict her words. She could hardly control a shudder when his hand landed on her shoulder.

"Do you fancy the Dark Lord, Miss Granger?" His silky voice wrapped itself around her, caressing her like a lover's, and his words caused a fire-engine red to spread across her cheeks, shattering her front.

"Wha-what?" she stuttered, his question taking her by surprise.

That was … that was preposterous. Well, it actually wasn't because she couldn't say that she didn't fancy him. It was just … what kind of a question was that? Embarrassment bristled into annoyance, and she lashed out.

"That's personal," she snapped, and then, she realized a second too late at how telling that answer was. Her cheeks burning, she added, "It's none of your business whether I fancy the Dark Lord or not."

No, wait. Still not a good answer.

"The point is, everyone idolizes the Dark Lord," she said, though that argument sounded weak even to her ears.

"Hm … is that so?" he asked.

His hand then traveled upwards until it was near the nape of her neck, and he gently played with the hair there. The logical side of her mind commanded her to move away. Yet, another part of her, a part that made her want to dig a hole in the ground and hide forever, beckoned to her to let him continue.

"Yes," she answered, unable to decide what she should do.

But … she couldn't do this. This was wrong. She shouldn't sit here and …

Abruptly, she stood up and stumbled to her right, until she was some ten feet away from Riddle.

"So … everything has been straightened out … and I need to know what I should do for my detention … or else it's nearly curfew, and it's at least a ten minute walk from here to the Gryffindor tower," Hermione said.

She had no idea if it were because of the lighting in the room, but something seemed strange about Riddle tonight. There was a certain devilishness in him tonight that she had never seen present on his face before, and it both frightened and excited her.

Riddle slowly moved closer to her. "Ah, yes, your detention …"

As if they were dancing to some kind of silent music, they moved in sync with Hermione moving backwards while he moved forwards, and she both feared and anticipated the moment when he caught her.

There must be something wrong with her, she decided. She had no other explanation for her actions and thoughts. She was supposed to hate this man who was threatening to take over the Dark Lord's place. Yet …

"You do realize that you've done something horribly wrong this time, don't you?" he asked.

She nodded absentmindedly. She wasn't really listening to what he was saying, now that her mind was busy evaluating her emotions. She did not understand herself at all. Well, yes, for the past few months, her initial dislike for Riddle had diminished and had slowly been replaced by admiration. After all, his talent was perhaps only second to the Dark Lord himself. Additionally, she had never seen a professor who was more intelligent than him. He seemed to be an expert in any subject she could think of.

But still, that wasn't even a good reason to like him. He was still a scheming git, and a traitor to the Dark Lord. She couldn't possibly fancy him, could she?

"And I hope that you understand that you're going to have detention for quite a long time for such an offense," Riddle was saying.

However, Hermione was still not listening because she found that she had maneuvered herself right up against the door. Without thinking, her hand fumbled for the doorknob, but to her horror, she found it locked. She jiggled it, wondering if it were just stuck. He couldn't have locked the door, could he?

Riddle sighed. "Some people just never learn."

She had no idea what he was talking about. It was not as if she had ever been stuck in a locked room with him before, if that were what he was talking about.

"Going to try _Alohomora_ next?" he asked lazily.

"May I ask what this is for?" she questioned him stonily.

There were no rules against locking the doors, of course, but it was still inappropriate, given the fact that he was a male and she was a female.

"To prevent a certain student from running away from their detention," Riddle answered as he stopped right in front of her.

Oh, Merlin. He really was a beautiful man. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she had known that she had been attracted to him since the beginning, but another part of her resisted that fascination. Somehow, it just felt too dangerous to her.

Besides, she had Ron already. She should concentrate on the relationship she had with him and not pursue what could never be hers.

Riddle's hand moved upwards and caught a lock of her hair between the fingers. "Why did you choose to be with Mr. Weasley?"

His question took her by surprise. It was almost as if he had read her mind. However, she hadn't looked in his eyes at all while she had been thinking about Ron. It would've been nearly impossible for him to use Legilimency if they didn't have eye contact, wouldn't it? Though Riddle was a powerful wizard, he couldn't be that powerful, could he?

Recomposing herself, she answered, "That's personal."

"As you've answered to my other question," Riddle said. "But perhaps … I can reconsider being more lenient towards you if you give me the answers that I want."

His hand intertwined with her hair, the tips of his fingers occasionally brushing gently against her skin and causing shivers to travel from that point down to somewhere deep inside of her.

Oh, this was so wrong. She should push him aside. There were no reasons for her to put up with what he was doing without a fight, and she shouldn't feel so bloody confused about her feelings towards him. Yet, she could not bring herself to push him or his hand away. It was almost as if she didn't want him to stop.

But … what about the Dark Lord?

_What _**about**_ the Dark Lord?_ An obnoxious voice sounded in her mind. _As if the Dark Lord would ever like someone like _**you**_. So many choices, and all of them much prettier than you. What do you have?_

Well, she wasn't too ugly. In fact, she could be considered pretty if she were willing to spend a little bit more time with her looks.

_The point is, you never cared about it, and making you act like Lavender or Parvati would make you jump off the nearest cliff._

At least she was smart.

_Oh, right. As if Mrs. Potter weren't smart. She's one of the Dark Lord's favorite followers, but he never saw her in that way before. What makes you think that you're better than her?_

"Quite the contrary," Riddle said softly, and he moved even closer to her. "You might find that you are wrong in your assumptions about what the Dark Lord is thinking."

Oh shit.

He knew Legilimency. And he was highly proficient in it, too. Hermione was positive about it now. There was no way he could have known what was going through her mind if he didn't. Mortification fueled her courage and recklessness, and without a second thought, she did the first action that came to her mind.

With a grunt, Riddle stumbled backwards while Hermione stood there for a while, trying to digest what she had just done: She kneed a professor in the groin.

Merlin, she kneed a professor in the groin!

"Not again," she thought she heard him groan.

She had no idea what he was talking about, and at the current moment, she didn't care. The most important thing was that she _**kneed**_ a professor in the groin, and a professor who was really, _**really**_ good in dueling. Oh, no. Oh, no. She was so dead. He was going to kill her. He was going to chop her up into pieces and throw them into the Forbidden Forest.

Even worse, she was going to get expelled from Hogwarts. She could already see Snape in her mind's eye, sneering at her with malicious glee as he informed her she was kicked out of school. What was she going to do? She could imagine Draco taunting her.

"_Knew that filthy Mudbloods wouldn't be able to catch up with us. It's in their blood. Hogwarts is too much for them, and it's obvious that You-Know-Who is just so ridiculous to take their side."_

Just as her mind creatively started to make up dialogue for the Draco strutting around in her mind, it occurred to her. She shouldn't be so afraid. It was _**Riddle's**_ fault to begin with. If he hadn't gotten so close to her, she wouldn't have gotten the chance to kick him down there.

As Hermione calmed down, she realized that Riddle had gotten up from the floor, too, though not without wincing from the pain.

"Merlin, I should tie your legs together whenever I need to speak with you," he said. His face was still scrunched up in pain and pale with tiny beads of sweat on his forehead.

"It's not my fault," she immediately argued. "If you hadn't come so close to me, I wouldn't have had the opportunity to kick you. If you … if you try to get me thrown out of school, I will have to tell the Dark Lord about everything that had happened."

She hoped the Dark Lord would believe her in this case. She didn't randomly go around kicking people in the groin after all.

"I'm sure he would give a fair judgment about what happened," he said through gritted teeth.

Hermione stared at him for a while before she fumbled for her wand. She had to get out of here. She had to get out of here and speak with the Dark Lord. If Riddle got the chance to speak with the Dark Lord first, she had no idea how he would twist the story around so that she would seem like the one at fault.

Keeping her eyes on Riddle, she flicked her wand at the doorknob, trying every type of lock-opening spells she knew. Much to her dismay, none of them worked.

At the same time, Riddle pulled out his wand, too, but instead of aiming it at her as she had thought he would, he pointed it at himself. A cool, blue light left the tip of wand and shimmered over the area where she had hurt him. Slowly, his face turned back to its normal color, and he no longer seemed like he was in pain. Finally, he flicked his wand again, and Hermione recognized it as the movements for a simple diagnostic test. Once he knew there was nothing wrong with him, he looked up at Hermione again.

Her heart jumped, and she frantically tried each spell she knew again, mentally cursing when each light hit the doorknob and beared no results.

"Did you really think that I would've locked the door with something that could be opened by _Alohomora_ when I'm giving _**you**_ detention?" Riddle asked.

Hermione turned around and found him staring at her with his arms crossed over his chest.

"What do you want?" she asked, momentarily forgetting that she was speaking to a professor.

Even if she did remember, it would have been hard for her to keep her temper at this point.

"What do I want?" he asked. "That's a difficult question to answer."

"You can't throw me out of Hogwarts, if that's what you're thinking," Hermione said, her voice braver than how she was really feeling. "If you report me to Snape, you'd get in trouble, too."

Riddle raised an eyebrow. "You've mentioned this twice already. Now, why would I want to throw you out when there are so many other things that could be done with you?"

Okay, that was definitely over the line, and Hermione regretted the fact that she hadn't hurt him even harder. Strengthening the hold around her wand, she was about to send a hex his way when he flicked his wand, summoned over one of the armchairs and sat down in it.

"So … you were saying something about reporting this to the Dark Lord," he said, eyeing her with an annoying smug look on his face.

For the first time, Hermione hated magic. She hated it for being the reason why Riddle was able to speak to her without the look of pain on his face. She hated it for being the reason why Riddle was sitting so bloody alluringly on that armchair. It should be banned for people with his level of charm to walk around.

"You think I'm bluffing?" she asked.

"Oh no. I never doubted that the Dark Lord is going to hear about this," Riddle said, twirling the wand in his hand casually. He tilted his head to the side. "Again."

She paused, and when she shook the confusion away, she stomped up to him. "For the first and last time, you will never be the Dark Lord. It's no longer funny, and even if the Dark Lord doesn't believe me—"

Her words were cut off when she felt a strong pulse of magic radiate through the room, coming from Riddle himself. Her voice was stuck somewhere in her throat, and she couldn't even gasp as the pressure made her swoon. She blinked rapidly, her mouth slack as her thoughts melted into rubbish.

"You were saying, my little lioness?" Riddle asked, his eyes glinting.

She couldn't answer, though she wanted to protest. The only person who called her that nickname was the Dark Lord. Did he really think …

Wait a minute. Even though Riddle did know Legilimency, she had never thought about her conversation with the Dark Lord in front of him. He couldn't have picked up those thoughts from her. Additionally, the Dark Lord _**never**_ called her that in front of other people. He had always called her "Hermione." It was always in private …

Suddenly, a scary realization dawned on her, and as she gaped at Riddle, she felt as if someone had dumped a bucketful of ice-cold water over head.

He. Had. To. Be. Kidding.

This couldn't be true. This had to be some kind of strange joke.

As quickly as he had released his magic, he reined it in again, allowing her to breathe more freely.

"But … how?" She had so many questions, but those two words were the only ones that made it out of her mouth. The others were just a jumble of nonsense.

Riddle couldn't be the Dark Lord. But … all the evidence was pointing in that way.

"How what?" he asked.

Oh, he couldn't make her say it out loud. It was too embarrassing, especially when she had accused him of …

Oh Merlin. She wished the floor would just open up and swallow her right this minute. She actually accused him of trying to usurp himself. As her previous conversations with Riddle and the Dark Lord flashed through her mind's eye, she felt her cheeks burn and she knew that she must resemble something like a ripe tomato right now.

And Merlin's pants, she kicked the Dark Lord in the … oh no. Oh no, no, no, she was so dead. This was … this was unforgivable.

Squeezing her eyes shut, she crouched down on the spot and continued wishing for a hole to miraculously appear under her feet. Alas, the gods were not so kind to her, and instead, she heard rather than saw the Dark Lord get up from his seat and walk towards her.

"Hermione," he said.

_I am not here._

"Hermione," he called again.

Taking a deep sigh, she looked up at him from her position, knowing that it would be ridiculously foolish to make the Dark Lord call her three times.

"Stand up," he ordered.

She grimaced and slowly followed his directions. The moment she was standing straight up, her mouth opened, and a long string of explanation spilled out.

"I'm sorry, my Lord. I … I didn't know it was you. I mean, you didn't tell us you were … and when I told you about … about those ridiculous assumptions, you didn't correct me, so naturally, I thought you were—"

"Hermione," he said.

"And you don't look like the same. I mean, I understand now that you used different looks for a purpose, but it just never occurred to me that … It didn't even seemed possible. I've thought about a few times; the magical aura that you've given off as Riddle was similar to what I've usually felt when you were the Dark Lord, but—"

"But much softer?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

His question caused another blush to appear on her cheeks.

"I didn't … I didn't mean it that way. I mean, yes, it seemed like it, but that was because you couldn't let the students find out that you are the Dark Lord, and—EEP!"

Just as she was babbling on, the Dark Lord suddenly grabbed her around the waist and pulled her flush against his body.

"Granger," he said softly, "listen carefully because I will not tell you twice, and I will not tolerate any interruptions. Are we clear?"

Hermione nodded. Her cheeks flushed red when she realized that her hands were placed on his chest—the _**Dark Lord's**_ chest. She was so close to him right now. She could smell whiffs of his scent, and mixed with controlled waves of magic that was pulsing off him, it made her slightly feint.

Something flashed through his face as he took in her reaction, and if it had been under any other circumstances, Hermione would've seen it as a warning and taken precaution. However, she was in no condition to take notice, and as quickly as it appeared, that something disappeared.

"The purpose of letting you know my true identity is not to let you fall over yourself apologizing to me," he said. "If anyone other than you finds out about this, be assured that the consequences will not be … desirable." He placed a single finger under her chin and tilted her head upwards. "And I don't mean just for you."

Hermione felt her breath hitch, and she realized that he meant that others would pay, too, if she were to tell them.

"I understand, my Lord. I will not tell them," she promised demurely.

"Now … about what the Dark Lord is thinking," he said.

His words made the blush on her cheeks turn several shades darker, and she really wanted to hide in a hole in the ground again. This was too embarrassing.

"It's … I'm …"

Oh, Merlin. What should she say? He had been using Legilimency on her throughout the whole time she had been staring into his eyes. He must have seen what had been going through her mind about the Dark Lord—about _**him**_.

"And your reason for choosing to be with Ronald?" he asked, his voice cold when speaking the redhead's name. "You can't possibly tell me that you couldn't find someone better than him when you were choosing a boyfriend. Of course, he isn't extremely daft, but the words that come out of his mouth makes him seem like he has the mentality of a two-year-old and the brain capacity of a Puffskein. I don't even know if I should be relieved or insulted that you fancied me throughout these years."

Her face couldn't turn any redder as she heard what he was saying, though she did have a hard time keeping quiet when he talked about Ron.

"If he had an exceptional talent in one thing or another, I could understand why girls would flock behind him. But he doesn't even play his position in _**Quidditch**_ well, which isn't too surprising considering the team that he supports," the Dark Lord said with a sneer. "And you don't even care about Quidditch, so that probably wouldn't matter to you. But he excels in none of his classes. At least Longbottom has been spectacular in Herbology, and even Malfoy was rather gifted in numerous classes. But Ronald …"

It made Hermione upset to hear him talking about Ron like this, and she wanted to defend the redhead, but she had no idea how to.

The Dark Lord glanced at her. "No retorts, Granger?"

"He plays chess well," Hermione said humbly, "and he's a great friend."

He let out a derisive snort. "Great friend? You wouldn't want to know half of the things that go through his mind when you and Harry are the centers of attention."

"That's because he's insecure," Hermione protested, unable to hold back her tongue. "He's afraid of being neglected. Mrs. Weasley always wished that Ron was a daughter, so he'd never gotten a lot of attention as a child, since there are five brothers ahead of him, and Ginny was born when he was one-year-old. He never got the attention he craved for."

"Oh right. I've forgotten that inherent need in you to protect all things living," the Dark Lord said wryly. "House-elves, centaurs, Hagrid, Harry, Ronald … what next, Hermione? Manticores?" He stared at her for a second before continuing, "Now that I think about it, what is he useful for? Perhaps I should give him to the Order. That should cause enough havoc there to hinder them."

Hermione swallowed before answering, "I … reckon it's because of his insecurity. If he manages to get over that, he could improve in all other areas."

The Dark Lord remained quiet for a while, eyeing her face, scrutinizing her, though Hermione had no idea why. It was almost as if he were searching for something.

Then, he released her.

"If that's what you believe," he said, his voice suddenly cold.

Hermione wondered if she had done something wrong and looked at him questioningly, her eyes wide.

~-0-~

Rolling his eyes up to the ceiling and without a moment of hesitation, Voldemort pulled out his wand and pointed it at Hermione.

"_Petrificus Totalus_," he cast, purposely letting her know what spell he used.

With a thud, Hermione—no, the doppelganger of Granger landed on the floor. Finally. He was nearly getting suffocated with all those drooling thoughts she had about him. What was wrong with her? This was not the Hermione he'd known.

He hadn't been particularly angry with Granger, since he knew that she had wanted to return to the future for her friends' sake. He'd known that even without Slytherin's intervention, she would have found a way to return her friends back to the future. It could not have been her own wish. If it were …

His eyes slightly narrowed upon that notion. If she'd wanted to return to the future for Ronald Weasley, she would learn that that would be … unadvisable. Especially now, when he had the rest of the world under his control. His mind was just getting creative about the methods he would use on her if she dared to leave him for Weasley, when he remembered that he still had the false version of her in front of him to take care of.

"Do you know what you've done wrong?" he asked quietly as he circled around her still body slowly. "Of course not. You do not have a single clue about what I'm talking about, and you're not going to have a clue about anything."

He took in a deep breath. Oh, this was infuriating.

"I can understand all that admiration that you've had for me while I have my other looks since I've practically been something like a _**god**_ to you and the rest of my Death Eaters. But after you've found out that I'm the Dark Lord, posing as your Defense the Dark Arts professor, you were supposed to fight back. And not even standing up for that moron of a wizard that you call your boyfriend. Even if there's nothing to stand up for when he's concerned," he said, more to himself than to her. He crouched down and grabbed her chin.

Ugh, now there were apologies in her eyes. _**He didn't want apologies!**_ If he still had hair, he would've torn them all out by now. Well, technically, he had hair since he was "merging" with his Horcrux to get the looks he had now. Nonetheless, he didn't need to harm himself for the sins that _**she'd**_ committed.

Releasing her chin as if burned, he stood up again and pointed his wand at her. "_Crucio_."

How dare this—this imposter take on the face and name of _**his**_ witch? He refused to believe that this laughable replica of Iris Parkinson would grow up to be _**his**_ Hermione.

But she wasn't screaming. He wanted to hear her scream in pain for daring to pretend to be his witch.

With a flick of his wand, he reversed the Full Body Bind placed on her and cast the Cruciatus on her again. Immediately, the sweet sounds of her screams filled his ears and slowly calmed him down. There. Much better.

"I'm—sorry—my—Lord—I'm—sorry!" the witch on the floor kept screaming whilst he kept the curse on her.

Unexpectedly, that made his ire rise yet again.

"You. Are. Not. Supposed. To. Apologize," he said through gritted teeth. He turned his wand another quarter of an inch and increased the strength of the Cruciatus.

Finally, she was using all her strength to scream rather than speak.

When he finally released her from the spell, he cast the Full Body Bind on her again. Closing his eyes, he pushed the feelings of anger back to a manageable degree before looking at her again.

Sweat had formed on her skin and drenched her robes, and she'd had her eyes closed when he cast the Full Body Bind on her. Good. He wouldn't have to see those un-Hermione-like gazes while he spoke to her.

"What has gone wrong with you, Granger?" he asked quietly, rolling the wand between his fingers. "This was not supposed to happen. You're not supposed to become a carbon copy of those annoying girls who followed me around like a stupid _**lapdog**_." He paused, his eyes narrowing. "I suppose childhood imprinting does have something to do with this, but you spoke up against Dumbledore when he did something idiotic, even when you apparently idolized him."

He could imagine the confusion clouding up her eyes, if they were open. As it was, he did not need to explain himself, something he was glad about.

"Apparently, telling you who I am is not the right direction to go. At least you dared to speak back when I was Professor Riddle. Perhaps we should try again?" He heaved an exaggerated sigh and crouched down next to her. "Hopefully, you've had enough sense to not tell Potter and Weasley about 'Professor Riddle's planning to take over the Dark Lord's place!'" he said, mimicking her voice for the last part. He paused. "Considering the fact that Harry still considers me his favorite professor, I assume that you haven't told them. But just in case …"

He grabbed her chin and undid the spell. The moment she opened her eyes, he was into her mind, and seconds later, he found his answer. Satisfied with the answer, he left her mind and placed the Full Body Bind on her again—he didn't need her interrupting his train of thought.

"Let's see then, no telling you I am the Dark Lord this time around, and no pretending that I'm trying to take over the Dark Lord's position because that will undoubtedly make you go insane again." He sighed and rolled his eyes. "We'll see if that'll make you a bit more … normal. And more like the real Hermione Granger. You've told Harry and Weasley that you have detention, so we need a reason for that. Ah yessss, we can say that it was because you've attempted to assault the professor. Or rather, you'll remember doing that."

He smirked at her and pointed his wand at her again. "_Obliviate_."

~-0-~

**A/N**: No, I'm not dead yet. The muse has been recently held hostage by "A Tangle of Webs," the birthday present fanfic I've written for Nerys and Lady Miya, which is why there hasn't been an update for SiT main story and the outtakes. However, that story is going to be a short story, so I should be back to a more regular updating schedule for this and the main story.

Many thanks those of you who've read and rated!

Huge, huge thanks to the below:

Betas: MaraudersWolf for grammar and Nerys for logic and flow

Reviewers: ShimmeringWater, m0nt, Megii of Mysteri OusStranger, AliBelly, DreamsMelody, Literature-angel, Shan84, Iceagesurvivor123, Miss Caroline Potter, HereToRead84, Dream a Dream123, MistressDragonFlame, Annoying Anon, BookishBrains, colortheskyred, AvoidedIsland, CaBuckeye, sarahslushie711, x Janele x, joliet14, Belle86, and erinelle!

Anonymous review replies can be found on my review reply LJ, the link of which can be found on my profile.


	4. April Fool's Chapter of the Main Story

**Chapter 56**

"Pika piiii!" Tom growled.

"PI KAAAAA!" Hermione yelled.

"Pika chu pi ka pi," he answered.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka!" she said.

"Pi pika pika! Pika pi pika chu pi pika!" he snarled.

"Pika pi pika chu pi pika pika chu pi!" she argued.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pi pika chu pi pika pika chu pi pika pi," said Tom.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka," she replied.

"Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka hu pi ka pika pika pi pika pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika!" he said. "Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika."

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu _**pi ka pika pika**_ pi pi pika chu pi pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika chu!" she said. "Pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika!"

"Pika pika! Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he said.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu?" she asked.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he answered.

"Pika pika chu!" she replied.

"Pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pika chu pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu," he answered. "Pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi!"

"Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka chu pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu. Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu," she said angrily. "Pika pi pika chu pi ka _**pika pika**_ pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu."

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu," he said. "Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu."

"PI KA CHUUU!" she yelled.

"Pika pika chu!" he growled. "Pika pika chu pika pi!"

"Pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu! Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu!" she argued.

"Pi ka pika pi! Pika pika pi pika chu! Pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu. Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu," he said. "Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi _**ka pika**_ pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu."

"Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," she replied. "Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu." She stared at him. "Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pika piiii!" Tom growled.

"PI KAAAAA!" Hermione yelled.

"Pika chu pi ka pi," he answered.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka!" she said.

"Pi pika pika! Pika pi pika chu pi pika!" he snarled.

"Pika pi pika chu pi pika pika chu pi!" she argued.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pi pika chu pi pika pika chu pi pika pi," said Tom.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka," she replied.

"Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka hu pi ka pika pika pi pika pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika!" he said. "Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika."

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu _**pi ka pika pika**_ pi pi pika chu pi pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika chu!" she said. "Pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika!"

"Pika pika! Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he said.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu?" she asked.

Tom glared at the woman laughing hysterically on the floor.

"Shut up, Granger."

However, that just made her laugh even harder. Tears were streaming down her face, and her arms were hugging her stomach, but she couldn't stop. Every time she stopped and looked at him, her eyes would flicker over to the bed, and then she would break down once again.

"I can't believe-How _**old**_ are you, Riddle? Twenty-five? Twenty-six? And you're still ..." Hermione then started laughing again.

"It wasn't me," he said, his eyes hard and aflame with anger.

"Oh, I'm sure it's not. That's why it's on _**your**_ side of the bed," she sniggered, glancing at the yellow, wet spot on the sheets.

"Granger, I'm warning you-" he said through gritted teeth.

"What are you going to do?" she asked, cocking her head to the side daringly. "Pee on me?"

With a growl, he launched himself towards her, and the sounds of yells (half playful and half fearful) erupted in the room.

Outside the room, the real culprit - a black-haired, bespectacled young man - hurried away under his invisibility cloak with a blond-haired young man.

"Pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu, pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu, pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu!" he said. "Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu _**pika pi**_ pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pika pi! Pika pika pika pi! Pika chu pi pika pi!" he replied. "Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pika pika," she had to agree.

"Pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he said, shaking his head. "Pika pika pi!"

"Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," she replied.

"Pika pika pi," he said. "Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pika chu."

"Pika pika pi. Pika pika chu pika pika pi. Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu _**pika pi pika chu pi ka**_ pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he said.

"Pika pika. Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu, pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi _**pika chu pika**_ pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu, pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," she said.

"Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he said. "Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pika pika."

"Pika chu pi. Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pika pika chu. Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pika chu," she replied.

"Pika pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pika pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pika chu," he said.

"Pika? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pika chu!" he objected. "Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu."

"Pika pika!"

"Pika chu pika. Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he said.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," she replied.

"Pika piiii!" Tom growled.

"PI KAAAAA!" Hermione yelled.

"Pika chu pi ka pi," he answered.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka!" she said.

"Pi pika pika! Pika pi pika chu pi pika!" he snarled.

"Pika pi pika chu pi pika pika chu pi!" she argued.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pi pika chu pi pika pika chu pi pika pi," said Tom.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka," she replied.

"Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka hu pi ka pika pika pi pika pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika!" he said. "Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika."

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu _**pi ka pika pika**_ pi pi pika chu pi pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika chu!" she said. "Pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi pika!"

"Pika pika! Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he said.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu?" she asked.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he answered.

"Pika pika chu!" she replied.

"Pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pika chu pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu," he answered. "Pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi!"

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu?" she asked.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu. Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he answered.

"Pika pika chu!" she replied.

"Pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pika chu pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu," he answered. "Pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pi!"

"Pika pika chu!" she replied.

"Pika pika! Pi pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu," he said.

"Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu? Pika pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pika pi pika chu pi ka pika pika pi pi pika chu pika pi pika chu?" she asked.

~-0-~

**A/N**: Happy April Fool's Day. XD *puts more wards up around secure hideout*

Inspired much by pikapipikachupi on Twitter.

Many thanks of those of you who read, faved, and alerted. Huge, huge thanks to the following for reviewing the previous chapter: Dinobunny, Nerys, ShimmeringWater, Brooke Alanah, LyraDragonflyy, Belle86, Vitamins, KidaRiddle, Summery-ice, Tsukiyo Akito, Anguis Intrepidus, callalily32, Desriel, Andy Lewis, Trelaney, Le26199, articcat621, M. V. Avery, andiescandieee, Dra9onf7yz, Shan84, GoldenAura, iysis75, Lost O'Fallon Girl, SapphireDreamer26, HereToRead84, Ashies, Sum, TheRYU, rok sok, JollyLoser, supanaturalgal, obsessed-andrea, trestreschic, shedevil628, werevampluvr, Weird-Chik2, paintmyworlddarkblue, Katarinea, DreamsMelody, sarahslushie711, alannalove1990, AvoidedIsland, AliBelly, cerulean azure, aringle42, Chelseabaabyox3, Sailor2Moon, maery, sKyLaR KnIgHt, Veronique Byron, Fiane, Divvie, x Janele x, Bookfaery03, XxJinxxedxX, Doctor It, Poptart-Freak, dcrazy madafaka, Miridea, Omi721, readingdeamon, and RiverRamsden!

Review replies can be found in the Tomione forum, the link of which can be found on my profile.


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